


Climbing the Corporate Ladder

by emc257



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Corporate, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anxiety, Emotional Manipulation, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-04
Updated: 2014-06-09
Packaged: 2018-01-03 12:15:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 23,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1070365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emc257/pseuds/emc257
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi is the CEO of a big corporation and needs a new personal assistant and a freshly out of College Eren gets the job. It might of helped that Levi can't keep his eyes off of Eren.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Just Hired

Levi’s shinny black shoes scuttled on the ground as he walked toward his office. The people around him adverted their gaze, sacred to make eye contact, as he walked past. Levi had the reputation over being overly stern with his employees. He viewed it as a privilege to work for him, so his employees were expected to act that way. As he neared his office, his personal assistant Petra opened the doors for him. He was just inside the doorway when he noticed a young man sitting in front of his desk. Levi would tell by the way the man was sitting that he was trying extra hard to sit up straight. He didn’t remember having any appointments and he hated when people arrived to his office even before he did.  
“Explain.” He said simply turning to Petra who had moved behind him.

  
“Human resources set him over to be your second personal assistant.” She said simply. The sudden noise had startled the young man, who almost jumped out of the chair closing the distance between them. He held his hand out for Levi to shake, but Levi just stared at it until it was retracted awkwardly.

  
“I guess I will have to interview him.” He signed annoyed he had to do something so mundane. Petra just rolled her eyes; she was one of the few who didn’t fall for Levi’s stern guy act. She closed the door as she exited. Levi silently walked around his desk and sat down. He motioned for the man to do the same, who hurried almost stumbling over himself to get to the chair he had just vacated. “Well then, tell me why I should hire you.” He commanded. Instantly the young man jumped into a clearly practiced speech.

  
“My name is Eren Jaeger and…” That was as far as Levi got before he zoned the man out. Instead he let his eyes travel up and down the man’s body. He was wearing what was probably the boy’s best suit, but he wore it well. He looked presentable, like he would belong in the setting. Levi’s eyes stopped when he got to the piercing green eyes. They were full of passion for whatever the man was talking about, Levi was definitely not listening at this point. When he had had enough he held up his hand for Eren to stop.

  
“Fine, you’re hired. Petra will tell you what you need to do.” Levi said before pointing going for some paperwork that Petra had left on his desk. He tried to concentrate on the paper work that urgently needed to get done, but he couldn’t seem to focus. His mind kept wandering back to those green eyes and lean body. Even time it happened Levi would mentally kick himself and try to refocus but he couldn’t. Sighing he resigned himself to not getting any work done today and turned his chair so it faced the window that was behind his desk. After a while he got bored of looking out the window to the streets below and got up and exited his office. As soon as the doors to the office started opening Levi could hear his two assistants end their conversation. He walked toward Petra’s desk, ignoring Eren sitting in the desk that faced Petra’s. Eren looked at Petra from his desk for some subtle clue of what to do, only to see her with a slightly confused look on her face.

  
“Get Erwin on the phone and get the fields on the new product from R and D.” Levi said coming up with things on the spot. He didn’t really need either of those things and Erwin would probably laugh at him when he told him, but he couldn’t sit in his office right now and do paper work. He turned to go back into his office, but instead turned to Eren’s desk and said, “I want coffee on my desk in ten minutes,” before disappearing back into his office.  
“He normally just uses the intercom,” Petra mumbled grabbing her phone. Before she dialed she looked up realizing that Eren probably didn’t know what he was supposed to do. “He means tea. Just go downstairs and ask for Levi’s order.” She said before turning her attention elsewhere. Quickly Eren went downstairs to the coffee shop in the lobby of the building. He inwardly groaned when he saw the line. There was no way that he would be back in ten minutes. Still he joined the back of the line, hoping that the tempo would suddenly pick up.

  
It did not, and Eren waited checking his watch every few seconds, fidgeting. He could feel the annoyed stares of the older businessmen around him. He was defiantly the youngest person around. Finally he got to the front of the line and just sheepishly asked for Levi’s tea unsure if the worker would know what he was talking about. It seemed like he did because only a minute later Eren had the tea and was in the elevator heading for the top floor. He arrived back to find Levi leaning against Petra’s desk. He must have said something funny because Petra laughed, throwing he head back. Once he noticed Eren had entered the room, Levi stood up straight, flatting the creases in his suit. Had he been flirting with her? He decided to ignore it; the two could do whatever they wanted. Eren just needed to make it through this job to a better one.

  
Grumbling Levi took the tea from Eren and walked back into his office closing the doors behind him. Petra gave him a questioning look. “Where were you? Ten minutes was generous and it took you twenty.” She said. Eren shrugged sheepishly.

  
“There was a long line, sorry.” He explained. Petra gave him a light laugh.

  
“Oh no, Levi owns this whole building just cut to the front next time and tell them it is for Levi.” She explained. Eren managed a quiet ‘oh’ before Petra launched into an explanation of all the other things that he would need to know if managed to keep his job. It was all so much that it confused Eren. After a while a man came into the waiting area and made a beeline for Petra’s desk. She greeted the man warmly. “Eren this is Auruo, Auruo this is Eren. Eren is Levi’s new assistant so basically the new me.” She said with a tiny laugh. Auruo just seemed to brush Eren off only paying attention to Petra.

  
“Are you ready for lunch,” he asked. Petra nodded standing up.

  
“Oh, Eren I would invite you to join us, but someone needs to be at the desk at all times.” She said apologetically. Auruo did not seem sad to have lost the chance for Eren’s company. Eren just nodded understandingly. Petra left, leaving Eren alone and unsure of what to do. Not long after Petra had left the doors to Levi’s office opened and the short man poked his head out.

  
“Petra?” He said looking around.

  
“It is just me sir.” Eren replied with a smile “Petra went to lunch.”

  
“Hmm, well then, Eren get me Hanji from R and D.” He said before disappearing. Having no idea who Hanji was Eren started flipping through the contact book Petra had left for him. He had just found her number when the intercom in Eren’s desk went off startling him. “Make sure she brings the files.” Levi’s voice said. Eren was quick to respond with a ‘yes, sir’ expecting that to be the end of that he went to dial when he heard Levi’s voice again. “Call me Levi.” He said in a slightly annoyed voice. Eren was quick to dial Hanji’s number; he ended up getting a very disgruntled sounding man.  
“Levi would like to see you and would like her to bring the files.” Eren said nervously hoping the man would know which files Levi was talking about.The man answered in a slightly confused tone.

“He would like to see me?” Eren could hear yelling in the background. “I think you mean Hanji, we will be there in 15 minutes.” The man said making Eren’s face turn red, of course he had gotten a security. He could hear the man yell be careful to someone before hanging up. He let Levi know of their expected arrival time before flipping through the contact list hoping to familiarize himself with the important employees at the company. After waiting for thirty minutes Eren started to get nervous that Hanji was not going to show up. Levi hadn’t said anything yet, but Eren was not sure how long he was expected to wait. He was about to call again when he heard the door to the waiting area bang open making him jump a little. He saw a very disheveled woman in a white lab coat and messily pulled up hair with a tired looking man trailing behind her. He went to let know Levi his appointment had arrived, only to see her already opening the doors to his office. He stood up to protest, only to have her security motion that it was all right. As the doors closed behind her he sat down nervously waiting to see if Levi called him angrily.

  
Inside the office Hanji was talking Levi’s ear off. He only called her here to get the files, but he should have known better it was never that easy with Hanji. She was a brilliant inventor and he was glad he was able to snatch her away form Erwin’s hands, but she never seemed to shut up. “I see you got a new assistant.” She said finally catching Levi’s attention, he stiffed a little. This was not lost in Hanji. “He is cute, I didn’t realize that was your type.” She teased. Before Levi could defend himself she launched into another tirade about her new invention that would earn the company millions. Levi just ignored her taking the files he had wanted from her hands.

  
When Levi had finally given up on getting any work done he exited his office to find Eren holding up his coat for him. He made the motions to help Levi put it on. Levi scowled to hide the slight blush that had risen in his cheeks. He quickly departed as soon as his coat was on. The whole ride home all he could think about was the young man with the brilliant green eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know this is a little Devil Wears Prada but I promise that it will not stay that way. Also it is currently General Audiences, but I will most likely up that later.


	2. Getting Used to the Job

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren gets used to his job and all that entails. His friends don't approve.

The next couple weeks set a sharp learning curve for Eren. Before coming to work for the huge corporation that was Survey Inc., Eren had only ever worked in his small town. After the first week, Eren was positive that he was under qualified for the job. He had only even applied because he was desperate for a job. He couldn’t let his roommates Mikasa and Armin cover his rent. While he couldn’t say that he loved his current position, he couldn’t say that he hated it either. Petra was great, she was always helpful and even Auruo was nice once he acknowledged Eren’s presence as well as Petra’s. He had even started to understand Hanji, who always seemed to be around.

Eren pretty much had the job figured out, with much help from Petra. The one thing he was still unsure about was his boss. Everyone in the entire building seemed scarred of him, expect for Hanji and Petra. Eren could understand why, Levi definitely gave out the impression that he had a short temper, but Eren had found that as long as the mistake was not made due to negligence or stupidity he was actually willing to give the benefit of the doubt. It wasn’t often that Levi met with people, he preferred to delegate that to others, he claimed that few people merited his time, but Eren was pretty sure that he just hated meetings. Whenever Eren sat in on one such meeting to take notes for Levi, he always noticed his elder drifting off. It would be hard to notice for people who didn’t know Levi, because he still had a look on concentration on his face, but Eren could see his eyes glazed over.

Over all Eren thought that the media’s portrayal of Levi as this hardened boss that was not afraid to screw people over was flawed. It was not uncommon for Levi to come out of his office to give Eren and Petra their instructions. Some of the times he would stay and chat for a little while. He mostly stayed by Petra’s desk, ignoring Eren entirely. He would lean one elbow into the desk, face close to where Petra sat. Eren wasn’t sure why but he always felt a little pang of jealously when Levi did that. He chalked it up to his desire to impress his boss.

One thing that Eren could live without was the fact that his job was pretty much a 24-hour job. He would get calls at all hours for things that Eren personally thought could have waited until it wasn’t 3 am. During only his second week, he had been woken up after a long day at the office, because Levi was out of cleaning supplies and need him to go out and get some for him. Eren had not completely understood but done it all the same. After he had found all the items on Levi’s extensive list he had the company car, which he was grateful that Levi had sent to Levi’s house. The door was answered but someone who looked to be a housekeeper. Eren went home slightly annoyed, why hadn’t Levi just gotten his housekeeper to do the shopping?

While Eren could over look the intensity of his job, his friends could not. Every time Eren’s phone went off while he was in his apartment one of his roommates would give a sarcastic remark. Eren found himself having to turn down events because he was always on call. When he did get to hang out with his friends, he had to endure their hardly veiled remarks about his job.

“Well, look who finally decided to join us.” Jean called as soon as Eren entered the bar where his friends went every Friday night. Everyone was already there gathered around their usual table. Mikasa had saved him a seat that he slid into trying to ignore Jean. “The short devil let you go.” Jean jeered.

“At least I have a job.” Eren hissed before ordering a beer. He could see Jean’s jaw lock in anger, Jean was very aware of the fact that he was currently job-less and basically living off of the generosity of Marco.

“He could at least have the decency to not call you at all hours of the night.” Mikasa said with a slight bitterness to her tone. Eren sighed heavily; he had had this conversation with Mikasa many times before and was really not in the mood for it right now. He was tired and really just wanted to go to bed, but he missed his friends so he had decided to go out. Eren opened his mouth to reply only to be cut off.

“Why do you always defend that guy? It is normal to take a few nocks at your boss, especially one that works you like you do.” Marco asked.

“What do you have a crush on him or something?” Jean added with a laugh. Eren grumbled in response not really in the mood to explain himself. “Oh my god, you do.” Jean practically screeched. “You have a crush on your boos.” Eren was positive that Mikasa got whiplash from how fast she turned her head to look at him. Her face demanded an answer.

“I don’t guys. He is my boss, that would be totally unprofessional and I need this job so I can get a better one.” Eren said to his defense. It was true that working for Levi opened a lot of doors for him and he wasn’t going to that that opportunity go to waste. He had no intention to be a personal assistant all his life. Jean just gave him a disbelieving snort.

Being to tired to argue; Eren just took a swig from his beer. If this was what it was going to be like every time he hung out with his friends, he might need to consider joining his co-workers on their nights out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is shorter, but I have the next couple chapters planned out, I am so excited.


	3. The Other CEO

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi gets a visit from rival CEO Erwin, who does not filter his thoughts.

Eren opened the doors to Levi’s office, humming a song that was stuck in his head. He had some files tucked under one arm and Levi’s teas in hand. Eren had made it a habit to get to the office early enough to beat Levi in order to get his desk ready. Eren placed the tea on Levi’s desk careful not to spill and started setting out the paper work, all the while humming.

“Well aren’t you chipper.” A cool voice said from Levi’s chair. Eren jumped dropping the rest of the files, spilling out everywhere on the floor. The high chair that Levi normally occupied turned to reveal a man who could only be described as handsome, but he was definitely not Levi. Unsure of who the man was Eren started to panic.

“Um, Sir this is Levi’s office. I am going to have to ask you to leave,” he stuttered earning a snort from the man in the chair. He leaned forward in the chair resting both elbows on the desk propping up his head, that he had cocked to the side a little bit.

“Well aren’t you just adorable.” Eren could feel a bite in the man’s voice. Despite his confusion, Eren could feel a little bit of blush rise in his cheeks. The man was making eye contact but Eren quickly broke it. As he looked a little to the side of the man, he could feel eyes raking up and down his body. He suddenly felt dirty for some reason. “It is no wonder why Levi keeps you around.”

“Erwin, you are here early.” Eren whipped around at the sound of Levi’s voice. He became acutely aware of the whirlwind of papers at his feet. Eren saw a little twitch in Levi’s face as he looked at him. Instantly Eren squatted down and started picking up the papers. He heard another snort from Erwin, a sound that was coming to dislike more and more. Something clicked when he thought about the name Erwin, where had he heard that name before?

“You are Erwin Smith, CEO of Smith Industries. The main competitor of Survey Industries.” He said looking up at Erwin from his place on the floor on his hands and knees.

Erwin threw his head back with a little laugh, “Oh, he is smart as well as cute. A really catch.” He laughed shifting his gaze from Eren to Levi.

There was an uncomfortable pause before Levi snarled, “Leave those and get out.” It was almost a bark, which made Eren jump a little in surprise. He had heard Levi use that tine before, but it was never directed at him. He was angry, and Eren wasn’t really sure why. Still he quickly stood up placing the papers that he had picked up on the desk. He nodded the Erwin, before almost running out of the office. As the doors where closing the two men could hear  the younger man hiss, ‘You could have warned me’ at Petra before the doors closed. Erwin let out a chuckle, pushing away from the desk, standing up. He walked over to where Levi was standing, towering over the little man. Levi made up for it with his anger though.

“Levi, I hadn’t realized you were one of those kind of men. One who would keep a pretty security around, seduce them.” Erwin said with a glint in his eyes. It was normal for him to tease his friend, but it wasn’t often he was able to get the shorter man to rise to the bait. “Although I guess at east you have good taste.” Erwin said looking away from Levi to the door Eren had just exited out of.

Levi just stared at Erwin, glaring for a moment before brushing past Erwin walking to his desk. After getting comfortable he said with more force than Erwin expected, “I am not going to be part of some sex scandal on the six o’clock news.” Erwin paused for a moment, startled by the intensity in his voice.

“Well then, if you don’t want him, I will take him.” Erwin said regaining his composure, while Levi fought to keep his intact.

“What you do on your own time is your own business, but keep it out of mine.” Levi said with gritted teeth. He was fighting to keep his tone level, a fact that was not lost on Erwin.

“Oh, watch it Levi, your voice is positively dripping with jealousy.” Erwin baited, cocking his head.

“Do you even work?” Levi retorted angrily making Erwin laugh. Levi let out a sigh of frustration, why did al of their meetings like this? Luckily for him Erwin had gotten bored of that subject and moved on the actual business Levi had called him here on. After they had finished the meeting, with Levi only having to withstand a few more of Erwin’s attempted at making him angry, he stood up to walk Erwin out, but was waved off. He sat back down, watching suspiciously as the doors closed behind Erwin. He let out a sigh trying to relax, but found that he couldn’t.

Outside the door Erwin had stopped by Eren’s desk. He was leaning down against the desk so his face was close to Eren. Eren himself was leaning as far back in his chair as he could without falling.

“How can you work for that man? He is so uptight.” Erwin asked with a smiled that was making Eren feel very uncomfortable. He looked over Erwin to Petra pleading for help only to be met with one of amusement. So he was on his own. “He doesn’t deserve someone like you, so come work for me.” Erwin purred, lifting his hand running it through Eren’s bangs. Eren was positive this constituted sexual harassment, but he was too shocked to do anything about it. After a moment of uncomfortable eye contact Erwin chuckled and pushed away from Eren’s desk and left.

“Is he always that _friendly_?”  Eren asked his voice hitching on the word friendly.

Petra let out a light laugh. “He is. He has done that to all of Levi’s assistants. Although normally he isn’t through.” She said, Eren was going to reply but was cut off by the buzz of the intercom.

“Eren, I need more tea, now.” Although it was only Levi’s voice, Eren thought he detected a bad mood. Not waiting that mood directed at him, Eren quickly headed toward the elevator. Once he had the tea in hand, Eren rushed back up to Levi’s office. He knocked lightly before opening the doors. He looked around and saw Levi sitting at his desk reading some papers; he looked up briefly nodding at Eren. Eren walked to his desk and placed the tea down carefully. Levi didn’t look up from his papers, so Eren turned around and started to leave. He was about half way across the room when heard Levi’s voice.

“Did he say anything to you?” Eren swerved looking at Levi who still hadn’t looked up from his papers. When Eren didn’t reply he finally looked up, Eren could feel daggers go through him. “Did Erwin say anything to you when he was leaving?” He said a little louder.

“Um, no not really.” Eren said confused. Levi looked Eren up and down making him shift uncomfortably. Finally Levi rested his eyes on Eren, making Eren even more nervous. Finally he looked away and looked back on his papers. Eren took this as a dismissal and left the room feeling the most uncomfortable than he had felt his entire time working at the office.


	4. Alone at the Office

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi and Petra go to an out of town meeting leaving Eren in charge

“Levi has a meeting in London next week.” Petra said as soon as Eren sat down at his desk. Eren looked at her slightly confused. It seemed normal to him that a CEO of a major international company would have meetings around the world. “I will be going with him, which means next week you will have to man the fort here. By yourself.” Petra continued. That would be it. Eren gulped a little nervously. So far he had relied on Petra to tell him what to do. He wasn’t really sure if he was going to be able to handle being here by himself.

“So what that mean? What am I going to be expected to do without Levi here? It isn’t like I can fetch him his tea.” Eren said with a nervous laugh, Petra just smiled at him.

“You will in act whatever Levi says while he is gone. He normally ends up sending instructions back while he is gone. It is your job to make sure that everyone gets those instructions.” Petra said. That did not seem too bad to Eren. All he had to do was wait around for Levi to contact him and then do what he was told. It really wasn’t different than every other day. He just wouldn’t have Petra there with him. That would definitely make the days much less fun. “Word of warning, make sure you act like you know what you are doing or they will eat you alive.” Petra said giving him a stern look.

Eren opened his mouth to ask her what she meant by that, but was interrupted by Levi coming in. Eren stood up to help Levi with his coat, his fingers brushing down Levi’s arm. Eren blushed a little. He still hadn’t gotten used to being so close to the short man. His mind was so wrapped around himself thinking about what Petra had just told him and about Levi, that Eren almost missed the fact that Levi was giving him instructions on some errands he needed to run. Eren quickly made a mental note to ask Petra about that last comment when he got back.

Unfortunately for Eren, Levi kept him too busy to talk to Petra. He was sent all over New York picking things up for the man. He had forgotten about it by the next day so he never got his answer. The next week on Monday he woke up with the sudden realization that today was his first day as Levi’s puppet at the office. He went in extra early just in case Levi had already left instructions for him, the time difference. It didn’t occur to him that Levi would actually still be on the plane. He sat in the office fidgeting in his chair unable to focus on the work he actually had to do.  

It wasn’t long before Hanji and her assistant Moblit came into the waiting room. “Oh, I am sorry Levi is in London. I can take a message for him.” Eren offered. Hanji waved him off.

“I know where he is, that is why I had to come to you.” Hanji said slamming her hands down on Eren’s desk making him jump. She leaned in so her face was close to Eren’s. “I need you to give me permission to go to the next stage for the project.” Hanji said waving for Moblit to come over with paperwork. Eren looked at it nervously.

“I’m sorry I can’t do that, Levi has to.” He said looking between Hanji and Moblit, who looked a little relieved that Eren had said no.

“Oh, come on. He isn’t here and I am ready to go on. You can just put the paper work through. Levi won’t mind. I mean it saves him the trouble after all.” Hanji said nonchalantly. Eren looked at her suspiciously and then at Moblit who was shaking his discreetly so Hanji wouldn’t notice.

“Like I said before. That is for Levi to decide. Not me” He said more forcefully. This seemed to work because Hanji let out a huff and backed away from the table looking a little annoyed. She stormed out of the room looking disappointed. Eren hoped that he had done the right thing. He could have put the paper work through, but eh knew that Levi liked to look at Hanji’s work before making any decisions. Moblit stayed back for a moment, Eren hoped not to yell at him.

“Thank you. She has been waiting for weeks for Levi to leave to trying in push that through, Levi had determined that the experiment was too dangerous and ended the project, mush to Hanji’s disappointment.” He said nodding to Eren before following his boss out of the room. Eren sighed in relief knowing that he picked the right decision. That made Eren relax slightly so he was able to go through the paperwork that Levi had left him. He checked his email for any updates to find email from Petra wishing him good luck. He smiled as he read the short email. After he closed it he still had a slight smile before some men he did not know came into the office. They walked up to Eren’s desk and dropped some forms on the desk. Eren picked up the papers confused why five men were needed to turn in some papers. He looked up at the men who were still gathered around his desk.

“Thank you, I will file this so Levi will look at when he gets back from his trip.” Eren said putting the papers away. He could see the jaw lock on the man who stood directly in front of Eren.

“Sorry, these are of a time sensitive matter and need to be dealt with now. So if you could just put those threw.” He said forcefully. Eren was taken aback for a moment. He toke out the files and again and looked through them. He didn’t really understand them but nothing about them screamed extreme importance. So he put them back away, looking back up at the men. Before he could explain, they all stepped forward and Eren was suddenly aware of the fact that he was alone. Normally Petra sat across from him and kept the reins of any situation. “I don’t think you understand. Just put them threw.” The man said aggressively. Eren was taken aback. Who did these men think they were?

“No.” Eren said angrily. “I _might_ give them to Levi when he gets back, but that is a very strong might and we both know that you won’t get anything threw without going through me first.” Eren said throwing the papers in the trash next to his desk for effect. The men looked like they were about to do something so Eren pushed it a little further. “And if you don’t get out of this office right now, I will call security.” This made the men high tail it out the room. As soon as the door closed Eren relaxed. He now understood what Petra had meant. People treated Levi’s trips as an excuse to run wild. Without the immediate fear of reprimanded from Levi, people were much more likely to act out. 

            The rest of the day went smoothly, Eren went home praying that the next couple would be just as smooth. As soon as he was in his apartment, Eren collapsed onto the couch. Armin gave him a look, asking what was up. “Levi is gone for a couple days which apparently means the office turns into an anarchy.” Eren said into a pillow. He did mange to catch a huff from Mikasa. “But hey, leaving me in charge pretty much means that Levi trusts me right?” He said looking over to his two roommates.

“Or that he doesn’t trust you to handle the actual trip.” Mikasa pointed out. Eren groaned into the couch. She couldn’t even let him have that little victory. He skipped dinner and went straight to bed, knowing that the next day was going to be a long one.

He arrived at the office ready for war only to find it oddly calm. Eren hoped it was because people had realized that they couldn’t trick him into getting what they wanted and not that they were planning their next move. Eren checked his email to find one from Levi. He quickly opened it and scanned it. He groaned out loud when he read the part that told him to tell the finance department they needed to adjust the budget for a new project he had developed with their London branch. He had only had a few interactions with the finance department before, but had not enjoyed it.

He sighed, standing up. It was better to get it over with now instead of pushing it off. He printed off the papers Levi had told him to take to them. He stood in the elevator hoping that it would break, but it didn’t, it just opened up taunting him. He could feel eyes on him as soon as he walked up to the office of the head of the department. With a gulp he knocked firmly before walking in.

“And what do we owe this pleasure.” The man asked as Eren walked to his desk. Eren placed the papers down and started.

“Levi needs you to redo the budget by next week.” Eren said. The man just looked at him like he was crazy.

“We just turned in the finished budget two weeks ago. There is no way we can redo by next week, it took months to develop.” The man said pushing the papers back to Eren. “Tell Levi it can’t be done.

“I suggest you make it happen, or tell him yourself.” Eren said looking the man in the eye.

“Listen here, you just started working here, and I don’t need to take orders from you.” The man huffed angrily. Eren was sure he was made to be taking orders from some one as young he was, but that didn’t give him the excuse to ignore his requests.

“You may not have to take them from me, but you do need to take them from Levi. I will make sure to let him know that you were unwilling to cooperate.” Eren said turning to leave.

“Wait, we will have it by the end of next week.” The man said, Eren could hear the panic in his voice. Eren nodded at him before exiting. This time he definitely could feel eyes on him.

After that incident no one else caused any trouble for Eren. Two days later Levi and Petra was back. Eren stood in front of Levi’s desk giving him a report of what went on while he was gone. Eren continued talking, watching for the little nods of approval gave every so often. When he finished Eren waited for comments, unsure of if his performance would satisfy. “Good job,” was all Levi said but Eren thought he was going to burst. That was the first time Levi had praised him. He walked out of the room a smile on his face.

“So I take it everything went well.” Petra said.

“No, please never leave again.” Eren said looking at her laughing only half joking. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think the next chapter will have smut. I have it all planned out, now I just need to type it.


	5. Back Room Mettings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi goes out with his own friends and ends up hooking up with an old fling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a very poor attempt at smut. I am so sorry.

Levi followed Hanji into a private room at his favorite restaurant. He saw Erwin and Mike, the head of the legal department at Erwin’s company, already seated. He noted the open bottle of wine next to them and slight pink tint to their cheeks. Levi smirked at the thought of the field day the press would have if they knew about these meetings. After all Erwin was the CEO of Survey Industries main competitor, Smith Industries. The news would be wrought with accusations of backroom deals, when in reality it was just a few friends getting drunk, with Levi babysitting. Even though they were competitors, Erwin and Levi had a very intimate relationship. They just played the role of enemies for the benefit of the shareholders. 

Hanji bounded forward, crashing into a chair by Erwin. She leaned over him and grabbed the bottle wine, taking a swig from it not even bothering with a glass. This earned a roar of laughter from Erwin and Mike. Erwin waved form another bottle, a smile on his face. Levi sat at the table much more deliberately, studying his companions. With the new bottle in hand, Erwin motioned to toward Levi, offering him some. Levi waved him off and ordered his usual tea instead. Erwin just shrugged and filled his own glass instead. One of them had to remain sober, and Levi knew very well that had to be him. Plus he needed to keep an eye on Hanji, to make sure she didn’t give away any company secret, she could get a little lose lipped when she got drunk.

Right now, Hanji was blabbing about her latest experiment, not letting anyone cut in. Levi sat back in his chair and sipped his tea keeping one ear open to the conversation. The conversation stayed light as the night wore on.  Levi stayed out of most of it, only interjecting with a witty comment that sent the others into an outburst of laughter. They didn’t worry about staying quiet, no would dare shush them. Erwin and Hanji did their usual flirting, knowing it would never lead to anything. Eventually Erwin got bored of that he turned his gaze to Levi, making him squirm in his seat.

“How is your new assistant?” Erwin asked batting his eyelashes at Levi.

“Are we talking about Eren?’ Hanji interrupted before Levi could end the conversation. “He is really cute. You should see how Levi looks when he is around. It is like a love sick puppy or as close Levi can get to that.” Hanji laughed, making Erwin give Levi a look, eyebrow raised.

“Eren is a satisfactory employee.” Levi said looking Erwin in the eye, telling him to drop it.

“Oh, Levi you are in denial.” Hanji cooed, grabbing Levi’s face in mock distress. Levi slapped away her hands away.

“There is nothing to be in denial about.” Levi hissed, eyes narrowed. Hanji gave him a look that said she didn’t buy it. Erwin watched with a bemused look on his face.

“Why don’t you just bang him and get it over with.” Erwin interjected studying Levi’s face. Levi tried not to let his anger show on his face, knowing that was what Erwin wanted.

“He is my employee and at least ten years younger than me.” Levi said calmly.

“Since when has that even mattered?” Erwin laughed. Levi rolled his eyes. He knew how Erwin liked to do it. He liked it quick and dirty, with no worry about scandal. Levi didn’t want that. “You better be careful, Levi. That boy is a catch and if you don’t want to have my sloppy seconds you better act fast.” Erwin continued.

“Don’t you dare.” Levi hissed with such venom in his voice that the other three knew a line had been crossed. The topic was dropped along with the mood. The rest of the evening past much too slowly for Levi’s taste; he couldn’t even look at Erwin after that comment; it made him too angry. When the four were ready to leave Erwin paid the bill saying it was his treat and they left. Their cars were waiting out front.

“Mike, why don’t you go with Hanji in Levi’s car and Levi can come with me.” Erwin said. Levi’s head shot up so he was glaring at the taller man. He was about to protest when Hanji said how perfect that would be. So Levi found himself sliding next to Erwin in the back seat of the car. He remained silent, not wanting to speak to the other man. “To Levi’s house.” Erwin said. Levi let out a little sigh of relief; he had kind of been scared that Erwin was going to take him hostage.

He felt a hand crept up on his thigh. He should have known that he wasn’t going to get off that easy. He slapped the hand away; not wanting to deal with a horny, drunk Erwin, but instead of taking the hint Erwin took it as a challenge. All of a sudden he was unbuckled and being pulled into the larger man’s lap. Erwin’s lips where being crushed against Levi’s. It was sloppy and Levi could taste the alcohol on Erwin. Levi started to struggle, but that only seemed to make Erwin want it more. His hands were on the middle of Levi’s back and the back of his head forcing Levi to stay close to Erwin. Finally Erwin released him and Levi threw his head back in an attempt to get away from the man, he tried to scout back over to his seat, but Erwin keep Levi in place on his lap.

“What’s wrong Levi, you used to in to this.” Erwin smirked. Levi scowled, curing all the times he had let the man talk him into doing it. “I know you aren’t getting any, since you are stuck on that boy.” Erwin purred as he moved kissing around Levi’s face. “If you want, you can picture him. I won’t be offended.” Erwin whispered into Levi’s ear, making his blood boil. But Erwin didn’t give him a chance to respond; his lips were already pressed against Levi’s again. At first Levi resisted, but eventually he gave in. He was frustrated and wanted to prove he wasn’t hung up on that boy.

With a sudden intensity Levi returned the kiss, surprising Erwin for a moment. Levi bit Erwin’s bottom lip making the man gasp a little. Levi took the opportunity to shove his tongue in the other man’s mouth, exploring it. Levi moved his hands up to Erwin’s shoulders. He moved his hips, grinding up against the man, making him moan. “There is the Levi, I know.” Erwin said as soon as Levi released him. They had arrived at Levi’s home and Erwin could not get them inside fast enough. As soon as they were inside, Levi scoped the smaller man up and hurried up the stairs. Levi would have protested being picked up like a high schoolgirl, but was too busy starting to unbutton Erwin’s shirt.

He was dropped on his bed and Levi moved to undress himself. Erwin had already finished and was grabbing lube and a condom from where he knew Levi kept them. He lathered up his fingers and moved toward Levi. He leaned down and kissed the smaller man as he pushed two fingers into the man, working him. Levi let out a moan that seemed to excite the other man because his became more feverish. Levi felt the fingers removed and he whined with displeasure. It didn’t take long for Erwin to put on the condom and slowly slide into Levi, making him gasp. His hips bucked up to met Erwin’s fast thrusts. Erwin was never one to go slowly and at that moment Levi was grateful for it. He didn’t bother muffing his moans knowing that no one was around to hear. Levi had his legs wrapped around Erwin’s waist pulling him down. Levi grabbed his own erection and started to pump, his hand matching the timing of Erwin’s thrusts. When Levi got close, Erwin grabbed his hand, not letting the smaller man finish before he had, not that it took that much longer for Erwin to reach his climax, pumping Levi so that came at the same time. Erwin pulled out and collapsed onto the bed next to Levi. Both of their breaths were shallow from the excretion. Erwin rolled over and kissed Levi lightly. “I can always count on you.” Erwin said cockily making the anger rise inside Levi again. Was that all he was? Someone for Erwin to quickly get off with and then discarded? As Levi’s mind began to wonder it ended back on Eren’s face. Levi felt a sudden wave a shame for what he had just done, but ignored it in favor of falling asleep next to Erwin. 


	6. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren gets a text asking him to go over to Levi's house.

The sound of his vibrating phone woke Eren. At first he debated just leaving it until morning, but he knew it was probably work. With a grunt Eren rolled over and grabbed his phone. It was Levi, with a groan open Eren opened the text and skimmed it. Just as he he had expected Levi had texted him asking him to pick up disinfectant. Why couldn’t that wait until morning? He quickly sat up, stretching. Once he was dressed, he headed to the door. As an after thought he wrote a quick note telling his roommates where he had gone.

It didn’t take long for Eren to pick up Levi’s favorite brand of disinfectant and get to his house. He knocked on the door and waited for the housekeeper to open the door. As he waited he bounced on the balls of his feet, hoping the lady hurry up and take the disinfectant so Eren could get back to his bed. After what felt like forever the door opened, revealing Erwin dressed only in boxers. Eren gawked for a moment before regaining his composure.

“Oh, Eren. What are you doing here?” Erwin said louder than Eren thought was necessary He had the swung the door open all the way, letting Eren see inside. He heard a door slam, and Levi came into sight. Eren looked at him, surprised at how disheveled he looked. His hair stuck all over the place and his face looked tired, Eren had never seen the man like that.

“What?’ the small man hissed looking between Erwin and Eren, confused. He spotted the bag in Eren’s hand and then up at Erwin’s smug face. He put two and two together and snarled. He hurried over to where Eren stood in the doorway and snatched the bag out of Eren’s hands, startling him. Levi made to close the door on Eren, but Erwin stopped him

“What’s the matter Levi? You wake the boy up at this hour and you don’t even thank him.” Erwin said in a mocking tone. Eren shifted his weight from side to side, uncomfortable at the present situation. He just wanted to go back to bed and forget what he was seeing. After working with Levi for the last couple weeks, Eren had figured out that Erwin and Levi were close friends, but he guess he just hadn’t realized how close they were. A sadness filled Eren’s chest and he wasn’t really sure why. He had the sudden urge to flee the situation.

Levi gave Erwin a look that curdled Eren’s blood; he didn’t know how Erwin could just stand there with a smile on his face. “Fine. Thank you Eren.” Levi said a pained voice. Eren nodded and turned to leave, but Erwin placed an arm around him dragging him in close. Eren was pressed against Erwin’s chest, the larger man’s arm pressed tightly around him. Eren shot Levi a look, which pleaded for him to save him. “Aren’t you such a good boy, Eren? I bet Levi is real proud of you.” Erwin boomed. Eren struggled under the weight of Erwin’s arm to get free.

“Let the boy go.” Levi said, not looking Eren in the eye. Erwin laughed, put let go. Eren quickly mumbled a good bye to Levi and hurried away before something else happened. Erwin closed the door and turned to look at Levi, the bemused look back on his face. Levi on the other hand looked like he was contemplating murdering the taller man.

“Oh, don’t look at me like that, Levi.” Erwin said placing his hand on the side of Levi’s face, cupping the smaller man’s cheek. Levi slapped the hand away.

“How dare you.” Levi hissed. “Do you think this is some sort of a game?”

“Well, yeah. I do.” Erwin smirked Anger flared up in Levi.

“Get out.” Levi said, shocking Erwin with the intensity. “Don’t say another word, just get dressed and get out.” Levi said again, this time with a quiet calmness to his voice. Erwin paused for a moment before complying. Levi watched him go before slamming the door behind him. Levi looked down and realized that he was still holding the bag that Eren had brought. With a sigh Levi walked to the closet where he kept his cleaning supplies and started putting away the bottles.

The next day Levi dreaded going into the office. He had a strict principal of keeping his work and personal life separate, but that went out the door. For some reason he felt the need to justify himself to Eren. He couldn’t stand the thought of Eren thinking what he knew the boy was thinking. When he arrived to the office he looked over to where Eren normally sat, but found it empty. He looked to Petra for an explanation.

“Oh, he got here early so I sent him on some errands.” Petra said smiling brightly. Levi nodded and continued into his office.  Closing the door he let out a sigh of relief. He knew that he would have to see Eren eventually, and he wasn’t sure that he was going to be able to look the boy in the eyes. Levi attempted to get work done, but the scene from the night before kept replaying in his mind. He was going to kill Erwin. He seemed to be getting less and less work done ever since he had hired Eren. It was starting to be a problem.

            Outside the office Eren arrived back from running the usual errands. Petra smiled warmly at him as he sat down at his desk. He kept looking over to the closed doors of Levi’s office wondering about the man behind them. After fleeing the scene the night before, Eren had not been able to get back to sleep and had thus spent the rest of the night analyzing what he had seen. It was obvious to even Eren what had happened, but what confused him was why Levi would ask him to bring him something at that time? Had he wanted Eren to see them together? It was true that Eren had a few impure thoughts about his boss, but he didn’t think that reflected on his work.  He wondered if this had happened to Petra as well when she had first started.

“Hey Petra, what kind of relationship do Levi and Erwin have?” Eren asked all of a sudden. Petra gave him a surprised look at the question.

            “They are close friends. I would have thought you would have noticed that by now, Eren.” She laughed.

            “But is there any chance that they are more than that?” Eren pressed. Petra gave him another confused look. He realized how odd he sounded and mentally kicked himself for bringing it up. It was Levi’s personal business. He should just leave it alone.

            “No, I don’t believe so.” Peters frowned. “Why are you asking about that?” Eren blushed and looked away, even though it was not an accusation.

            “Oh, no reason. I was just wondering because Erwin visits the office a lot.” Eren covered. This seemed to satisfied Petra, because she turned her attention back to her computer. That answer only confused Eren more. He decided not to dwell on it though. Not too much longer Levi’s voice came on over the intercom asking for Eren to come inside. With a little bit of dread, Eren stood up and walked into the office. Eren saw Levi leaning forward on his desk head propped up by his hands. He looked concerned, Eren noticed.

            “About last night...” Levi began, but Eren cut him off.

            “Don’t worry about it. After all what you do in your free time is your own business.” Eren said with a hint of bitterness in his voice. It was silent for moment as Levi studied Eren trying to gauge his true feelings. He still felt the need to explain himself, but Eren didn’t seem to want to hear it. Levi could feel a tension between them that didn’t used to be there. He felt the desperate need to fix it. “Is there something you wanted?” Eren said interrupting Levi’s thoughts.

            “Yes, I would like you to go down to finance and pick up the reports for this quarter.” Levi said. Eren left the room, leaving Levi alone with his thoughts. Clearly neither of them were going to talk about it, so he only hoped that time would fix the tension.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I have finals starting tomorrow so I might update once more tomorrow, but if not I should have an update in a week.


	7. A Little Helpful Advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *Updated chapter 7*  
> Eren deals with the emotions from seeing Levi with Erwin. Erwin also strikes again expect this time his target is Eren. Levi must figure out how to deal with this new situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I just completely rewrote this chapter. The ending is completely different. Sorry to people who read the first posting of it, that was awful and I am sorry that I posted it. I like this version much better. Please let me know how you guys like it. Thank you all for the kudos and comments that are very helpful to me when I am writing. I hope to be updating on a regular basis now. Sorry again.

After work Eren went back to the apartment he shared with his childhood friends, Armin and Mikasa. He hadn’t seen them since the night before, so had not been able to tell them about what he had seen at Levi’s house. He wasn’t looking forward to that conversation but he knew he should talk to them about it because he was confused, himself about it. He knew he shouldn’t care about what had happened, but he did.

As soon as he got home he went straight to his room, closing the door behind him. Eren flopped onto his bed; not long after there was a knock on his door, and Armin came into the room. He perched on the edge of Eren’s bed and looked down at the taller man.

“What’s wrong Eren? We can feel you radiating angst all the way from the living room.” Armin asked. Eren looked up from Armin to see Mikasa standing in the doorway looking at him with concern on her face. Eren’s face went red, embarrassed at how transparent he was.

“Did something happen at work?” Mikasa asked.

“Well technically it didn’t happen at work…” Eren trailed off looking into space so not to have to look at his friends. He wasn’t sure how to explain what had happen to them. He was sure Mikasa would think it was inappropriate; which she was technically right about; and tell him to quit, while Armin analyzed him. Eren wasn’t in the mood for either of those things now.

“Does it have anything to do with that call you got obscenely late last night? What happened?” Armin asked. Damn, Eren should have known Armin would guess what was up, he always seemed to know what was going on.

Eren nodded, and opened his mouth to explain. Once he was finished telling the story there was a moment of silence while his friends digested what he had said. Eren fidgeted on his bed, worried about what they would say.

“That asshole.” Mikasa muttered under her breath, making Eren look her way. “He called you at that god forsaken hour just to show off his booty call. You should quit. That is not professional behavior.” Eren rolled his eyes. He could always count on Mikasa being over protective. It kind of made him feel better knowing that he was always able to predict how she would act toward him. Armin didn’t look convinced though.

“That doesn’t really make sense though.” Armin said deep in thought. Eren looked at him confused. It kind of made sense to him; after all Levi was the CEO of a major corporation, it wasn’t like he had to care what his employees thought about him. Eren was totally replaceable.

  “Levi has always been strictly professionally with you hasn’t he?” Armin asked, Eren nodded. Professional was how he would have described his and Levi’s relationship as up until now. “Then why would he change that now, especially in that way? He wasn’t going to get anything out of you like that, unless that was his way of hinting at a threesome.” Armin said. Eren grimaced and Mikasa looked murderous. “Yeah, I wasn’t expecting that either. That means there is probably some misunderstanding. Your options are to either ignore it or talk to him about it.” Armin said finally.

Eren groaned and laid his arm over his face. He knew that talking to Levi wasn’t an option. That would be too awkward, especially after he had told him it wasn’t a big deal earlier that day. That only left him with one option, and Eren wasn’t sure he was going to be able to do that.

“I guess I will just let it go, since I can’t talk to him about it and I can’t quit, this is an excellent job.” He said looking directly at Mikasa, who huffed in disagreement.

 

 

The next couple weeks were awkward to say the least. Eren wasn’t sure if Levi felt the same way, because he always wore that stoic face, but Eren liked to think he was able to read Levi better than some of the other people at the office. He thought Levi had been acting strangely lately.

While Eren actively tried to avoid his boss at all costs, Levi seemed to want to do that opposite. He called Eren into his office for every little thing, hardly ever calling Petra in. Eren was sure he just wanted to gloat, but grinned and bore it. If he could stick it out here for even just a year, he could get a much higher paying job pretty much anywhere else. Before he would have been content to just stay working for Levi, now he couldn’t wait to get the hell out.

Before Eren every walked into Levi’s office he mentally prepared himself by telling himself that Levi was just his boss nothing more. Levi was the CEO of a major corporation, he could sleep with anyone he wanted, and that did not seem to be Eren. He may have a little crush on Levi, but any hopes of that had been squashed by Erwin. How was he supposed to compete with that? Erwin was everything Eren was not, he was on the same level as Levi while Eren was as far as he could be from the two. Erwin was an equally power and rich CEO and he was handsome too. Eren might as well give up.

Above any other complaints Eren had about life at the office, was Erwin. The man still came into the office frequently. Before Eren had thought it was because Erwin’s and Levi’s companies were close business partners, but now Eren knew what the two were doing.

The guy gave Eren the creeps. He did not seem to understand the idea of personal boundaries, always getting too close to Eren when he came in. He was always flirting with Eren, which made the younger man feel sick.

One day when Erwin came in, he handed his coat to Eren to hang up. Eren got up from his desk and walked to the coat rack. As he was hanging up the coat he felt a weight press up against his back. Erwin wrapped his arms around Eren’s waist and was leaning down so his mouth was by Eren’s ear.  He could feel Erwin’s breath, hot on his ear making him shudder.

Eren tried to free himself from the much bigger man, by turning but all that did was trap him facing Erwin against the wall. It was a very compromising position and Eren hoped no one would walk in. He wished that Petra had not left to get more coffee, but he didn’t want her walking in now because he was sure she would think he was flirting with Levi’s boyfriend.

Erwin leaned his head forward again so he could whisper in Eren’s ear. “Levi doesn’t appreciate you enough. Come work for me. I can should you how a boss should reward their workers.” Erwin whispered, making Eren gasp. Erwin placed a kiss on Eren’s neck sucking hard. Eren was frozen in shock, unable to push the bigger man away, although he wasn’t sure he was even strong enough to get the taller man off of him.

“Erwin!” An angry voice shouted behind them. Erwin turned his head to see Levi standing in the doorway of his office, but did not move to free Eren. Instead he snaked his hand around Eren grabbing his ass, making Eren yelp in surprise.

Erwin winked at Eren before walking to meet Levi. “Another time then Eren. You know how to reach me.” He said before walked into the office.

Levi remained in his doorway looking at Eren with an expression Eren could only describe as venomous. It actually scared Eren to see. After the doors of the office were closed Eren went back to his desk, still in shock. He did not expect Erwin to be that bold and for Levi to see. Did Levi think that he was trying to seduce his boyfriend? He prayed he wouldn’t get fired over this, if he did he would be pissed. He let out a sigh of frustration when Petra returned to her desk holding a mug of coffee. She looked at him confused.

“Is everything alright, Eren? What is that on your neck?” She asked kindly. Eren jumped, lifting his hand to his neck feeling a bump. He cursed under his breath Erwin had left a mark.

“Oh it is nothing.” Eren said waving Petra off. She didn’t look convinced but let it go returning to her work.

 

 

Inside the office Levi was fuming. What did Erwin think he was playing at bringing Eren into this? Erwin on the other hand was looking at him with an amused look on his face, which made Levi even angrier.

“What the hell is that look for?” Levi hissed at the taller man. Erwin smirked at him.

“I haven’t seen you this relied up in a long time. In fact I think it was when we first started hooking up.” Erwin said with a laugh that did not reach his eyes. “I think you are in love.” He said looking directly into Levi’s eyes. Levi fought back the blush that threatened to rise in his checks. He shot Erwin a glare, but the man seemed unaffected by it.

“And by that who do you mean, because I am sure as hell not in love with you.” He spat, sitting down at his desk. Erwin gave him another bemused look.

“So you haven’t even realized it yet. This is will make it more fun.” Erwin said quietly. Levi did not like where this was going, but Erwin did not clue him in. “You are so clearly in love with your new secretary.” Erwin said like it was obvious.

Levi stared at him. True he thought Eren was attractive, but that was hardly fair, because one look at the boy would have anyone agreeing with him. He also enjoyed having the boy around, which he had to admit was odd for him seeing as normally he opposed the company of others. He also felt oddly protective of the younger man, but that didn’t mean anything. He was just an employee that Levi was looking out for. It was something any good boss should do. No he was not in love with his secretary, that would be too cliché.

The whole time that Levi thought in silence, Erwin was studying him. Eventually Levi came to his conclusion. “You have finally gone insane.” He said looking at the man. “Leave my employees alone. Harass your own employees.” Erwin laughed at that statement.

“You know, the hunt is what makes it fun.” Erwin said in a voice that sent shivers down his spine. He started to fear for Eren’s safety. “If you want him, you better make your move fast because I am not going to wait for you.” Erwin said becoming switching the topic to why he had actually come to Levi’s office.

Levi was too distracted by what Erwin had said to pay attention, just agreeing with whatever Erwin said. He had to protect Eren. He wasn’t sure how just yet, but he knew he had to protect him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My tumblr is awildtitanappears if anyone whats to say anything about the fic and does't want to post it here. I will also track the tag climbing the climbing the corporate ladder fic.


	8. A Little Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi calls Eren into his office for a little chat and Hanji takes Levi drinking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is another chapter. I like the idea that Hanji would be the one that would be Levi's daytime drinking partner. Thanks for the comments and kudos guys. I really appreciate it.

Eren sat at his desk fidgeting with the collar of his shirt. Ever since Petra had mentioned the mark on his neck, Eren had been paranoid about it. He kept trying to pull up the collar of his button down shirt to cover it, but it was too short. His hands flew away from his shirt as the doors to Levi’s office opened. He looked over his computer at Erwin exiting the office. Petra was at her desk, so he hoped that Erwin wouldn’t try anything. He saw Levi follow Erwin out of the office. 

Eren quickly stood up to grab Erwin’s coat. He held up Erwin’s coat for the man, trying to stay an arm length away. Erwin didn’t move closer to Eren, but let his hand linger on Eren’s too long to be comfortable.

“Don’t keep your driver waiting Erwin, it is rude.” Levi hissed from behind them. Eren was grateful for the interruption, as Erwin took his hand away from Eren’s.

Eren started to go back to his desk but Lei turned to glare at him. Eren actually shuddered under the look. He did not normally think Levi was scary, but at the moment he felt like Levi’s glare was going to actually kill him. He looked away from his boss uncomfortably.

“Eren, I need to see you in my office now.” He said before turning to walk into his office, not waiting for Eren to follow him.

Eren swallowed the lump of nerves in his throat and followed his boss into the office. He was about to get fired he knew it.  He would just have to explain to Levi what had happened, he could be reasonable.

Levi was already sitting behind his desk, head in his hands. Eren thought he looked tired and confused. It couldn’t help but feel concerned for the man. When Levi looked up at Eren, he gestured for the younger man to sit down. Eren sat in the chair in front of Levi’s desk looking up at his boss nervously. Neither said anything for a little while. Eventually the silence was killing Eren so he started.

“What did you want to talk to me about, sir?” He asked, fighting to keep his nerves out of his voice. Levi sighed looking Eren over. He was about to speak when he noticed the red mark on Eren’s neck. He lost his train of thought and just stared at the mark. It was clearly from Erwin, and taunted Levi. Eren noticed where Levi’s eyes had gone and pulled up his shirt collar to cover the mark. He was ashamed to have Levi see it.

“I called you in here to make sure you were doing alright. How are you adjusting to the job? You have been with the company for a while now.” Levi said coolly. He wasn’t sure how he should handle this. He wanted to make sure Erwin wasn’t bugging Eren, but he didn’t want to seem like he was being invasive. He had to admit that if the boy wanted to peruse Erwin, he couldn’t really stop him. After what he saw this morning, he wasn’t sure if he was too late.

Eren shifted in his chair. He was unsure of how to answer Levi. Other than Erwin, he loved his job. He enjoyed working for Levi, maybe a little too much. Sure some of his coworkers could be annoying like Auruo, but that was too be expected. Erwin didn’t actually work for the company and was Levi’s boyfriend so was he allowed to complain about him? Was this just some sort of test Levi was putting him through? Levi was looking at him expectantly so he had to come up with answer quick.

“Things have been going well. I think I have finally adjusted to things here.” Eren said hesitantly. He wanted to tell Levi about Erwin sexually harassing him, but he wasn’t sure how. Many he should just feel grateful from the attention of such a powerful man. Many he was just blowing things out of proportion, but it just felt so wrong.

“No problems?” Levi prompted. Eren shook his head, biting his lip. “Are you sure?” Levi said looking disappointed. He guessed it was confirmed that Eren liked Erwin. Eren shook his head again. Levi’s mouth went dry. “Well then, I want you to know that working for Survey Industries we require a certain amount of loyalty.” Eren looked up at Levi confused. Did he think he was leaking company secrets? “That means not fraternizing with the enemy. As you know Smith Industries is Survey Industries biggest rival. It wouldn’t do for our employees to be seen close with them.” Levi said with a warning in his voice. He hoped that this would scare Eren away from Erwin.

“What do you mean, sir?”  Eren asked, mind reeling. That was basically a threat. Levi was pissed. Eren had encroached on Levi’s turf and now he was going to be punished. Although he thought it was kind of hypocritical of Levi to say he couldn’t fraternize with people from Smith Industries when he was fucking the CEO.

“I saw you with Erwin.” Levi said in a low voice. Eren felt his heart stop. “That is not appropriate behavior for a work place.” This was his chance to clear his name.

“Sir, that was not what you think it was.” Eren started, he paused expecting Levi to cut him off, saying he didn’t care about what it was, but that never came. Levi was now looking at Eren patiently. “Well, you see that was…” Eren faltered, could he just call Erwin out on his harassment. “I was just putting away Erwin’s coat when he grabbed me. I tried to get away but he his stronger than me.” Eren said hesitantly. He watched Levi’s face trying to read his emotions. His worst fear was that Levi wouldn’t believe him. He wasn’t sure what he would do if that happened. He bit his lip out of nervousness.

Levi thought for a moment. He didn’t doubt Eren’s story; that was something Erwin would do. He was actually surprised at how tame it had been. He was relieved though to know that Eren had not instigated it. He was just unsure of how to handle the situation now. He let out a loud sigh and visibly saw Eren flinch.

“Thank you for clearing that up Eren.” Levi said trying to smile to put the boy at ease. “I will talk to Erwin about this situation. You may go now.” Levi said.

Eren stayed in his seat for a moment shocked at how well that had gone. He realized he should leave, and quickly got up leaving the office. Petra gave him a worried look as he sat back down at his desk.

“Are you alright, Eren? You were in there for a long time, and Levi seems to be in a bad mood.” Petra asked, concern lacing her voice. Eren nodded and assured her he was fine. He actually was, which surprised him. Now that Levi knew he wasn’t flirting with Erwin, he felt a ton of pressure lift off his shoulders. Levi had even said he would talk to Erwin about it. Things were finally starting to get better Eren could feel it. He couldn’t hold back a soft smile as he started his work again.

Inside the office, Levi felt trapped. Talking to Eren had made things worse if that was possible. He did feel better knowing that Eren was not interested in Erwin’s advances, but he also knew that Erwin would not give up so easily. He was sure that Eren would eventually give in and fall for Erwin. Everyone always did, Levi certainly had, although he had not put up much of a fight.

He also knew that even if he did talk to Erwin about the harassment, he would not stop. Erwin would just laugh in Levi’s face. He had promised Eren that he would handle the situation, though and he did not want to disappoint the boy. His desire to protect Eren went beyond that of a boss-employee relationship, but he was fine with that. He knew that he and Eren could never be a couple, but he would be happy as long as he was not with Erwin. So now he had to work on an attack strategy. 

The door to Levi’s office banged open not too long later. Levi looked up from his computer at the intruder. He did not like people bursting into his office. His look of angry morphed to one of annoyance when he saw it was just Hanji.

Levi waved Eren off who was looking apologetic in the doorway. It wasn’t fair to blame him for letting Hanji he, he knew damn well that Hanji would interrupt him no matter what he was doing if she wanted to.

The woman in question ran up to Levi, slamming her hands against the desk. “Get up. We are going drinking.” She demanded. Levi knew her better than to think he had an option, but that didn’t mean he was going down without a fight.

“It is the middle of the day, and besides I have work to do.” Levi said turning to his computer.

“Just delegate it to someone else. Skipping out of work is supposed to be one of the perks of owning your own company.” Hanji said pulling on Levi’s arm.   
            “Alight, damn it. Give me a minute to tell Eren and Petra.” Levi sighed getting up from his desk.

Hanji let out a whoop loud enough that Levi was sure that the people three floors below could hear. She ran out of his office, he followed behind more slowly. Levi quickly gave his instructions on how to handle his absence to Eren and Petra, leaning against Eren’s desk. He noticed Hanji watching him and quickly straightened up and followed her out of the building.

She ended up dragging him to some hole in the wall bar that was open even though it was only 2 in the afternoon. As they entered Levi looked around the bar, unimpressed. Whoever was in charge of cleaning the place should be fired.

They sat at the bar, and Hanji ordered Levi a beer, knowing that since she had been the one to drag Levi out she should be the one paying not that Levi needed her too. Levi took the bottle from her with a sour expression on his face. He wasn’t really one to drink beer, preferring wine. Hanji looked at him and laughed.

“Sorry they don’t have that expensive French wine you insist on drinking.” She roared taking a gulp of her own beer. Levi huffed at her remark; he couldn’t help if he had more class than her. “So I am sure you are wondering why I brought you here.” She said smiling evilly at him.

Levi had just assumed he had wanted to get drunk off her ass in the middle of the day and did not want to do it alone. This was not the first time she had pulled stunt like this, and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. He wished she would find a new drinking partner before it actually started interfering with his work.

“I saw Erwin on his way out today.” She said; Levi froze not liking where this was going. “He had that smirk on his face that meant he is on the prowl, I just wanted to make sure that you two aren’t hooking up again. You two are much better as friends.” She said nodding her head knowingly. Very few people knew about Erwin and Levi’s messed up history and Hanji was one of them. She was very protective of her friends and knew better than to let Levi go down that path again.

Levi had a look of horror plastered on his face. He did not want to get into this right now. He was not drunk enough. He downed the rest of his beer and ordered another.

“Theoretically speaking, what would you say if I already had?” He said hiding behind his second bottle of beer. Hanji glared at him. “It was one time. I think I am allowed to slip on occasion.”

“Not when I will have to be the one to put you back together again when you fall apart.” She said seriously. It always pained Levi when Hanji had to babysit him.

“It doesn’t even matter, I’m not the one he is going after.” Levi muttered bitterly. This was news to Hanji.

“Who is it then?” She pressed. Levi looked away, at his bottle debating if he should tell her or not. “You know I will find out soon enough. I am Erwin’s friend as well as yours.” She pestered. Levi sighed.

“Eren. That goddamn bastard is going after Eren.” Levi said bitterly grabbing his bottle tightly. “Why does he always have to go after the things I want? Why can’t that bastard just leave me the hell alone? He brought Eren into our history, I know things didn’t end well between us, but that doesn’t mean he needs to drag Eren into this, he is innocent.” Levi muttered. Hanji gave him a pitying look, placing a comforting hand on Levi’s back.

“Because he is an ass.” She offered helpfully. “Although this is prompting you to be more assertive about the whole Eren thing, so many he is helping you in his own twisted way.” She thought out loud. Levi glared at her. “Look all I am saying is that it is obvious you like Eren, but we know you. You aren’t going to act on those feelings unless you feel threatened, and Erwin his threating you. It is sort of like a male dominance animal mating thing I guess.” She said.

Levi looked at her incredulously. If she weren’t so brilliant he would think she was crazy. That made no sense, why would anyone in their right mind think Erwin was just helping him out. “So you are saying this is just Erwin’s way of being my wingman.” He said sarcastically taking a gulp of beer. “Well then let me just call him up and thank him for the wonderful job he is doing, fucking up my life.”

**“** I’m not saying it excuses his actions, just that it could be a possible explanation.” She countered.

            “Or he just gets off on fucking with people.” Levi said; Hanji let out a frustrated sigh.

            “Well what are you going to do about all this?” She asked. Levi sipped his beer.

“Isn’t it obvious I am going to protect Eren.” Levi said. Hanji nodded her approval.

            “Maybe in the process you can win him over too.” She said winking at Levi, who did not say anything, but let that pleasant idea wash over him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be some what smut in the next chapter, but as you all know I am not really good at writing it so I am going to apologize in advance. 
> 
> Leave any feedback you have here or on my tumblr awildtitanappears   
> I really like hearing your guys comments and if you have suggestions I do take them seriously. Thank you guys for reading.


	9. Caught

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi puts his plan in motion. Erwin has other plans though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another update :)  
> This has an attempt at somewhat suit, but yet again I am sorry at my terrible writing.  
> I hope you enjoy this chapter anyway

Levi’s plan to protect Eren ended up being to just keep a closer eye on the man. He would wander out of his office at random times of the day just to chat with Eren. He started to actually get to know the man outside of the work place. Eren told Levi about the friends he lived with and how his mother had died when he was young. Eren’s face would go red anytime he talked about his personal life, and mutter sorry’s for being unprofessional, but Levi would just wave it off insisting that it was fine. The more Levi learned about Eren the harder he fell for the younger man.

As Levi leaned on Eren’s desk listening to a story about something silly he and his friends had done in college Levi observed the man and his surroundings. He had never noticed how organized Eren’s desk was. Nothing cluttered the desktop, all of the papers neatly stacked and to one side. At the top of Eren’s desk he had all his pens lined up neatly. It made Levi happy to see how organized the boy was.

Eren himself looked the part of a personal secretary to a CEO of a major corporation. He always wore a dark suit paired with some colored tie. Today it was a turquoise that matched his eyes perfectly, Levi noted. While Eren’s suits wear not designer, he wore them well. Levi had noticed that they showed off the younger man’s ass when he walked.

Levi realized that he did not actually need to check up on Eren when he knew Erwin was not around, but it was his excuse to get close to his employee. The times Erwin would need to come over to the office for business, Levi would conveniently send Eren on some sort of errand so they would miss each other. It wouldn’t work indefinitely, but for now it was the best Levi could do.

It did not take long for Erwin to see what he was doing.

“You know, you can’t keep me from seeing him forever.” Erwin said with a certain amount of a threat in his voice. “Besides, you can only control what happens inside this building; outside of it is fair game.” He said with a smile that made Levi want to punch him.

“Leave him alone Erwin.” Levi said steeling his voice. “I am not going to let this on ego, like I do for everything else you do. For once in your life try to be a decent person.” He spat. Erwin raised his eyebrow surprised at Levi’s sudden confidence. While Levi was a brooding, angry little man to everyone else, Erwin knew him more intimately. He knew all of Levi’s insecurities and buttons and was not afraid to use them. Erwin was used to being the one in control with their relationship.

“I don’t think I like that tone.” Erwin pouted walking toward Levi’s chair. He dropped down in front of Levi with an evil smile on his face. “I think you need to learn a lesson.” He said before spreading Levi’s legs and unbuttoning his pants, pulling out Levi’s cock.

Levi tried to push the man away from him, but Erwin’s grip was firm. He started placing micro kisses on the underside of Levi’s cock. Levi tried to control his breathing trying not get aroused but Erwin knew exactly how his liked it. Erwin slowly swallowed all of Levi, easily taking him in.

Levi let out a breathy moan as Erwin withdrew before taking him in again. Erwin went quickly, bringing Levi to full arousal. All thought of stopping Erwin, flew from Levi’s mind.

Levi moaned as Erwin swirled his tonged around the tip. He thrust forward sending his cock forward, but Erwin did not even gag. Damn him and his lack of a gag reflex.

Erwin had his hands on Levi’s thighs tightly gripping them. There would be bruising but Levi didn’t care about that at the moment. He was too focused on the man between his legs. Erwin hummed, the vibrations feeling wonderful on Levi’s cock. Erwin looked up at Levi through his lashes.

“Look how easily I break you.” Erwin breathed, the warm breath on his cock made Levi shudder. “Why would you ever want anyone else? Can your secretary do this to you?” Erwin said before taking Levi him his mouth again.

Levi’s hips thrust forward shallowly and he can feel the back of Erwin’s throat. He lets out a moan, not bothering to be quiet. The walls to his office were sound proof he didn’t have to worry about anyone hearing them. Erwin set a fast pace that Levi would not last long with.  It did not take long for Levi to come down Erwin’s throat.

There was a brief knock on the door before it opened. Erwin had just being getting up, but Levi shoved him back under the desk. Eren walked into the office. Levi’s heart sank with the realization of what he had just done. Eren was not supposed to be back from the errands Levi had sent him on for over an hour.

“I just have the files and coffee you asked me to get.” Eren said with a smile placing them both in front of Levi on the desk. He looked into Levi’s eyes and noticed how red his face was and his shallow breath.

“Are you alright sir?” He asked concerned. It was not like Levi to look like that. “Where is Erwin? I thought you were having a meeting with him….” Eren started but then put it together. “Oh well, then. I am sorry for intruding.” Eren said quickly retreating from the office closing the door behind him.

Levi let out the breath he had been holding. Erwin got out from under the desk a smirk on his face. It has gone better than he had expected. Levi glared at the taller man, and quickly fixed himself, zipping up his pants.

“You asshole.” Levi hissed.

“You could have stopped me if you didn’t want it.” Erwin said, which Levi knew he was right. He could have stopped Erwin if he really wanted to, but hadn’t and now Eren had seen them together for the second time. “Just give up.” Erwin whispered in Levi’s ear before placing a delicate kiss on Levi’s lips. He left not much longer after that. He winked at Eren as he left.

Levi did not leave his office for the rest of the day too ashamed to see Eren. He made sure to release his assistants over the intercom and then waited for a safe amount of time before leaving himself.

That night Levi opened a bottle of wine while he thought about his state of affairs. On one hand he could not deny his feelings for Eren, but on the other he still had lingering feelings for Erwin, that the man would not let die. He also knew that Erwin was not above using Eren and then discarding him. The idea of that made him down an entire glass of wine in one gulp.

He sat in his living room in a large leather recliner. It was comfortable, Levi’s butt sinking into the leather. He sipped his wine trying to steady his racing thoughts. His eyes moved around the room taking in its organizational perfection.

His whole house looked like a furniture catalog, not an Ikea one but a high end one. All of the furniture was foreign and impeccably clean to Levi’s high standards. He always got complements on the interior design of his house. Levi pretended it was because he had good taste, but in reality he redecorated constantly never satisfied. His OCD never let him feel like it worked.

He knew he had screwed up yet again. The look in Eren’s eyes when he realized what Levi had done was burned into Levi’s memory. Hurting Eren was never his intent, but he seemed to keep doing it. He reached to refill his glass again, and found the bottle empty. He opened another one. Normally he would only drink one bottle at a time, but he needed more than that at the moment.

He snorted into his glass as he thought about Erwin’s threats toward Eren. So far it was Levi himself that had done the most damage to any chances of a relationship there. He was just a fuck up when it came to other people. Levi wasn’t stupid he realized the reason he didn’t have many friends or past relationships was because of him. He knew that he had a rotten personality and pushed people, away but had done nothing to change it.

The idea of maybe having a relationship with Eren made Levi want to change. He sipped his glass of wine thinking about his past boyfriends, or more accurately boyfriend. Erwin was Levi’s only real relationship experience, Erwin had been the only that had been able to put up with Levi, but Levi screwed it all up and now he was alone again.

He was one his third bottle of wine. This time he did not bother with a glass just drinking straight from the bottle.

There had to be away for Levi to make things right. Just sitting in his house drinking was not going to solve anything. It would not win him the boy of his dreams. Levi was just not sure of what to actually do. People always said that a direct approach was the best approach. Levi would just lay all of his cards on the table for Eren to see and leave it up to Eren to decide what to do.

The wine left Levi feeling more confident than normal. He originally planed to talk to Eren at work the next day, but something inside him told him that now would be the better time. Levi didn’t give a damn what time it was, he reach for his phone and dialed Eren’s number, waiting impatiently for the boy to answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for my terrible writing  
> I am starting my summer job now so updates will be at best once a week.  
> Thank you again for kudos and comments. If you have anything you would like to say feel free to say it, I do not mind criticism.


	10. Conversations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren goes over to Levi's house and actually thinks things are going well for once

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is the next chapter. I started my summer job where I will only have access to internet at most two hours a day, so sorry if I don't respond to stuff, it is easier for me to talk to people on my tumblr, awildtitanappears, if someone wants to have a long conversation
> 
> thank you all for the kudos and comments. I really appreciate them. Even if you just want to say you hate it (or you know critique) I read it and try to make improvements.

Eren was grateful to be alone when he got home from work. He had felt like crying after he left Levi’s office, but had managed to hold back the tears. Now that he was in the privacy of his own room, Eren was able to finally let it out. Eren lay on his bed clutching his pillow to his chest as he cried. He had not even bother to change out of the suit he had worn to work.

He had thought things had been going well at work. He did not have to see Erwin and Levi had started interacting with him in a more personal way. Eren had could feel his crush on Levi growing and had even let himself hope that maybe, just maybe Levi could like him back.

There had been signs, or at least Eren had thought they were signs. Whenever Levi came out of his office he always went to Eren’s desk, hardly ever Petra. Eren had also noticed the way Levi would lean into his desk while they talk, putting them closer together. Levi always looked to intent while he listened to Eren talk. Levi himself didn’t talk much but Eren had assumed that was just because of his personality, he didn’t really mind though; he talked enough for both of them.

Eren realized that he didn’t actually know anything about Levi, expect what had been reported on the news. Maybe he had misjudged Levi, maybe he and Erwin were meant for each other. It hurt him to think that, because he wanted to believe Levi was better than that.

Once he ran out of tears Eren slowly sat up on his bed, still clutching his pillow. He took a couple deep breaths.

“I will not let him get to me.” He repeated to himself as he stood up to change out of his suit. Before he left his room to make himself dinner he checked his face in the mirror. His eyes were puffy and red, but other then that there was no signs that he had been crying. He didn’t expect Armin or Mikasa home, but he really didn’t want to have to explain to him why he had been crying. It would be too embarrassing.

Luckily for him, neither was home yet so he had the apartment to himself still. He quickly made himself a hot pocket, too tired to make anything else. He ate in silence and returned to his room. He curled up on his bed, pulling the covers up over his head. It was still early but Eren didn’t feel like doing anything.

A couple of hours later he heard the front door open and close. He heard Mikasa call for him softly, but didn’t reply. When she came into his room, Eren pretended to be asleep, until Mikasa left.

After a while Eren was able to fall asleep, but was woken up by his phone going off. He groaned, rolling over to his nightstand to grab his phone. He squinted his eyes because of the bright light of his phone. A loud moan escaped him when he saw the name.

_Levi_

Eren had half a mind to refuse the call and then just pretend he hadn’t heard it. On its fourth ring Eren answered. “Hello?” He asked hesitantly.

“Errrren?” came as the reply. “I haaave to talk to you.” He said drawing out his words. Eren didn’t reply for moment. Was Levi drunk? He would never expect Levi to act like this. “Are you there? Errrrrren! Don’t be mad at me.” Levi said, his voice cracking on last sentence. It hurt Eren to hear Levi like this.

“Levi. Where are you? Are you alright?” Eren asked, sitting up.

“I’m at my house, brat. Where else would I be?” Levi said with a growl. That sounded more like Levi. “I haaave to talk to yoooou.” He said in a singsong voice. And he was gone again.

            “I better come over.” Eren sighed swinging his legs out of bed. “Stay there and I will be right there.” Eren said in a firm voice, and hoped that drunken Levi would listen.

“I’llllll be waiting for yooooooou.” Levi said before hanging up. Eren snorted. Who would have thought Levi would be a delusional drunk. It would be amusing if it weren’t 3 am.

Eren got ready as quickly as he could. He made sure to leave a note for Mikasa and Armin just in case he wasn’t back by the time they woke up. He left his apartment and headed for Levi’s townhouse. Eren used the taxi ride over to collect his thoughts. He tried to keep his expectations low. Levi was drunk, so he was basically supposed to babysit his boss.

When he arrived at the townhouse, he paid the taxi driver and walked up to the door. Eren held his breath as he rung the doorbell. No one answered. He tried again with no answer. He let out a frustrated groan and leaned head against the door. Why did he have to be the one to get called? Why not Petra? In a last ditch effort Eren tried to the door to see if it was unlocked; it was. That was certainly unlike Levi to be so careless.

Not being careful to be quiet Eren entered Levi’s home. “Levi?” He called walking into the den. Levi was sitting in a reclining chair, but as soon as he spotted Eren he was out of the chair. Eren couldn’t help but giggle at Levi’s tumbling as he walked over to him. It was just the opposite of what Eren had built up as his image of Levi. He jumped forward to catch Levi when he was about to fall.

“Thank you.” Levi slurred patting Eren’s chest. Eren carefully sat himself and Levi on the floor, Levi still clinging to his chest. Eren looked around the room and saw three empty bottles of wine, and a fourth open one. He repressed a groan. “I have to talk to you.” Levi said booping Eren’s nose. Eren smiled at that, but also weirded out by it. Drunken Levi was touchier than Eren expected.

“Promise not to hate me?” Levi slurred making Eren nervous. What was so bad that Levi had to get drunk to tell him about it? But he nodded anyway for Levi to continue. “I know you think I am screwing Erwin, which is kind of true.” He said furrowing his brows, in a way that Eren would think was cute if it wasn’t for what he was saying. “But I’m not. We used to be a thing, but now we just fuck when he is bored or angry at me. Now he is after you.” Levi said jabbing Eren in the chest. Eren looked at Levi like the older man was crazy. He was clearly drunk off his ass and just rambling at this point. “Erwin knows I like you so he is using you against me. He is going to try to seduce you in order to hurt me. Please don’t hate me Eren.” Levi said looking up at Eren with pleading eyes.

Eren was silent for a couple minutes trying to digest what he had just heard. As much as he hated to admit it, Levi’s story could actually be plausible assuming that Erwin was a heartless bastard, which was not hard for Eren to imagine. Levi was still clinging to his chest gazing up at him. Eren figured that Levi was too drunk to remember this the next day so he might as well make a few confessions of his own.

“It’s alright Levi.” Eren started. A wave of relief filled Levi’s face making Eren smile. “You know, I like you too.” Eren said, watching Levi go from surprise to confusion, back to surprise, and then to happiness. He hugged Eren tightly around the waist. “But why would Erwin want to hurt you?’ Eren said still not understanding that part.

“ Because he is an ass.” Levi snorted, and Eren had to agree. “ We had a bad break-up that he never got over and I am too emotionally stunted to get anyone else.” Levi said wallowing in self-pity.

“Well I mean you like me and I like you, so maybe when you aren’t drunk you could ask me out on a date.” Eren said softly so he wasn’t sure if Levi heard him, but the shorter man shifted so he was no longer clutching Eren, but facing him on his knees looking at Eren with a sudden look of intensity.

“You aren’t allowed to take that back.” Levi said. Eren laughed.

“I won’t.”

“You have to swear it.” Levi said glaring at Eren, but kind of lost its affect in his drunken state.

“I pinky promise that if out ask me out on a date when you are not drunk and it is not,” Eren looked at his watch, “4:30 in the morning, I will go on a date with you.” Eren said striking out his pinky. This seemed to satisfy Levi as he firmly grasped Eren’s pinky with his own.

“I’m tired now.” Levi said suddenly, making Eren smile. He stood up, pulling Levi up with him. He wasn’t sure where Levi’s bedroom was and Levi didn’t seem like he was in the condition to remember himself. So instead he carried Levi to the couch and laid him down on it. He stood up to leave, but Levi grabbed his hand.

“You aren’t leaving are you?” He asked in such a needy voice that Eren couldn’t say no.

“I’m just going to sleep on the chair over there.” Eren assured the drunk man before collapsing into the leather chair not too far away from the couch. It was comfortable so it did not take long for Eren to fall asleep.

A sharp kick to the shins woke Eren up the next morning. “What the fuck!” He yelled pulling up his legs to his chest.  He looked up at Levi who was standing over him with his usual stoic expression. Eren had been expecting Levi to be too hung over to move let alone kick him; he looked at this watch, 7 am.

“We have to get ready for work, brat.” Levi said fixing the collar of his dress shirt. Eren looked at him like he was crazy.

“I don’t have my work clothes with me.” He said quickly standing up.

“We will stop by your apartment for you to change. Breakfast is on the table, go eat.” Levi commanded gesturing toward the kitchen. Eren went into the kitchen and found a fully prepared breakfast on the table. When had Levi woke up, Eren wondered sitting down at the table. He picked up a fork and started eating the scrambled eggs. There wasn’t another plate so Eren assumed Levi had already ate.

Levi himself came into the kitchen, grabbed a cup of tea and sat across from Eren at the table. It was silent; the only sound was Eren’s chewing.   
            “Could you chew any louder?” Levi said disgust in his tone. Eren rolled his eyes. He wasn’t going to take any of Levi’s shit after last night. Eren finished his breakfast and followed Levi out to the car. He directed Levi back to his apartment so he could get changed for work.

Not wanting Levi to see that state of his apartment, Eren tried to convince Levi to stay out in the car, but the older man insisted on going in. As Eren unlocked the door to his apartment, he prayed that at the very least Mikasa and Armin would still be asleep. He pushed open the door and instantly Mikasa was on him.

“Eren!” She said grabbing his arms. “We were worried about you since you didn’t come back.” She stopped when she noticed Levi behind Eren. Levi stuck out his hand toward Mikasa.

“I am Levi, Eren’s boss and the reason he is coming home at this time.” Levi said in an unapologetic tone.

“Mikasa, his sister.” Mikasa said taking his hand.

Eren told Levi he could wait on the couch and quickly went off to change into a suit. He did not want to leave those to alone for a long period of time. He just had a bad feeling that those two would not like each other.

He wondered how much Levi remembered, as he quickly got dressed. He was acting like he wasn’t even hungover, so maybe he did remember what he had told Eren the night before. Eren’s mouth went dry thinking about it. Surely if Levi did remember he would have brought it up by now, Levi had had amble opportunities to.

Eren grabbed a tie and ran out of his bedroom to find Levi still standing by the door typing something on his phone and Mikasa silently glaring at him from the other room.

“Give me that.” Levi said looking up to see Eren struggling with his tie. Slowly Levi tied the tie around Eren’s neck. Being so closed to the younger man made Levi’s heart flutter a little, but he managed to hold on to his composure. “Ready? We are already late so let’s get going.” Levi said turning around to walk out the door. Eren waved good-bye to his adopted sister and followed his boss.

The drive to the office was silent, Eren fidgeting in his seat. When they arrived at the office both men exited the car, Levi throwing his keys to the valet. Before Eren could walk into the revolving doors, Levi stopped him with a hand on his chest.

“I hope you know I am holding you to your promise last night. I am taking you out this Saturday. Be ready at 7, I will pick you up at your apartment, which I now where it is” Levi said before walking into the building leaving Eren outside.

Eren stood outside the building watching Levi’s receding figure, with a stunned look on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should have another chapter up next week, but that is if I have anytime off, which is sketchy so I won't make any promises. (this job literally gives us no time off during staff training)
> 
> Please leave feedback! :)


	11. Love Sick Puppy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi start to have some nervous thoughts leading up to the big date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I didn't actually think I was going to be able to get this out this week on time, but we had a surprise night off. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter, it is a lot of filler so I am sorry but I really enjoyed writing it.
> 
> Yet again feedback is welcomed and encouraged.

The weekend could not come fast enough for Eren. That day at work had gone especially slowly with how tired Eren was. His giddiness from being asked out didn’t help anything. When he sat down at his desk, he must have had a goofy smile on his face because Petra was giving him a look.

“Did something good happen, Eren? You look really happy.” She asked sweetly.

“I thought he looked a little constipated.” Auruo laughed, Petra lightly jabbed him in the side to make him stop. Eren just rolled his eyes. It was so obvious that Auruo was just copying Levi, he was even copying his humor.

“Not much is going on. I’m just really tired, so I am kind of out of it.” Eren shrugged. Going out on a date with his boss was probably not something he should advertise. The whole situation was strange and unprofessional.

“I noticed that both you and Levi were late.” She said in a thoughtful tone.

“He called me really early to help him out with a few things and it ran long, that is why we were late.” Eren said quickly covering. He turned to glare at Auruo who had snorted at his statement. Eren didn’t understand what Petra saw in that man, he was rude and completely unimaginative.

Tired was not a good word for how Eren felt by the end of the day, exhausted was a better fit. Without the six cups of coffee that Eren drank that day he doubted he would have gotten through the day. As it was he had nearly fallen at his desk half way through the day, and had only woken up because Petra threw an easer at him. Eren noticed bitterly that Levi didn’t seem be having the same struggle. Just another thing that made the man perfect, Eren noted.

When he was finally realized Eren could not have been happier. He was going to go back to his apartment and sleep and not wake up until he had to go to work the next morning.

It seemed like a perfect plan until he walked into his apartment. Armin and Mikasa were on the couch watching television. When they heard Eren enter the apartment, Mikasa stood up and followed him into the kitchen. Silence filled the kitchen as Eren made himself a grilled cheese while Mikasa watched. It kind of creeped Eren out, but he wasn’t quite sure what his sister wanted.

She waited long enough for Eren to finish his dinner before she started questioning him. “Why were you gone so late and why did he come over this morning?” She asked as Eren washed his plate. He should have expected that line of questioning, but was hoping it wouldn’t come. He noticed that Armin had left the living room and was now looking at him expectantly. Mikasa must have told him about Levi coming over that morning.

“Levi called me last night.” Eren started trying to decide if honesty was the best routine. Both of his friends could tell when Eren was lying but that had never stopped him before. “He was drunk so I went over to his place to help him.” He said deciding on honesty. In the long run it would be safer, besides Eren was dying to gush about his date that Saturday with Levi.

“That’s not your job though.” Armin said. Mikasa was muttering something under her breath that Eren was sure he didn’t want to hear. He shrugged at Armin’s comment.

“He said he wanted to talk to me and I didn’t want him to hurt himself.” He justified. It may not be in his job description to take care of his drunk boss, but he felt like he had a responsibility to.

“Why would he want to talk to you while drunk at 3 in the morning?” Mikasa asked coolly. Eren hesitated, biting his lip. This was the part that was going to be tricky. He had not told either of his roommates about Erwin’s sexual harassment, and he knew that Mikasa would be furious.

“Well you know Erwin Smith, CEO of Smith Industries?” Eren asked, both Armin and Mikasa nodded so Eren continued. “He has been sexually harassing me every time he comes into the office.” Eren said waiting for Mikasa to blow up.

Mikasa was up in front of Eren in an instant, placing her hands on each of Eren’s arms, expecting him. “Why didn’t you tell us?” She asked softly, almost hurt that Eren had kept that from them.

“You know we would have supported you.” Armin chimed in looking concerned. Eren smiled at them.

“I know that, but Levi promised to stop it and he did so I didn’t want to bring it up anymore.” He assured them. They didn’t look convinced.

“Ok putting that aside for the moment,” Armin said. Mikasa looked as if she didn’t want to move on. “That doesn’t explain why he would want to talk to you.” Eren bit hi lip, at this rate it was going to split.

“Well I kind of have developed a habit of walking in on Erwin and Levi when they are you know, having sex.” Eren said hiding behind his hands. Mikasa looked disgusted while Armin just nodded. “Well last night Levi got drunk and explained to be that Erwin has been sexually harassing me to get back at Levi for breaking up with him.” Eren finished. Mikasa looked furious, but Armin started talking before she could explode.

“But why would Erwin think that he could get back at Levi through you?” He asked confusion on his face.

“Well Levi admitted to me last night that he liked me.” Eren said hurriedly. “And today he asked me out on a date.” He added with a soft smile.

“And you said no, right?” Mikasa asked. Eren looked away from her. “You said yes? Eren.” Mikasa said in a tone that Eren knew meant she was about to go full on mother on him. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes knowing that it would only make things worse.

“I have to agree with Mikasa on this one, Eren.” Armin chimed in. Eren turned to look at him, with a look of betrayal on his face. Normally he could count on Armin being on his side when Mikasa got to over protective. “Don’t give me that look. We are just trying to look out for you. It sounds like Levi has some severe emotional baggage, and I am just not sure you can handle that. You aren’t too good yourself in relationships. Besides that Erwin guys sounds dangerous. If he hears you are going on a date with Levi what do you think he will do? I think you should really reconsider this.” Armin lectured.

He was silent for a moment trying to suppress the anger he felt. Armin had been one of the people that said he should accept his crush on Levi and now that he had made actual progress he was saying he should stay away? That wasn’t going to happen, once Eren decided he wanted something he would find a way to get it.

“Look guys, I appreciate the concern, but I wish you would just be happy for me.” Eren said looking Mikasa in the eyes trying to guilt trip her. It seemed to work because she was the one that broke eye contact. “I know Levi has some shit going on, but it is just one date. What could go wrong?”

“He is your boss.” Armin said. “You boss who is the CEO of a major corporation that the press would love to find a scandal for.” Eren had not actually thought of that last part. He knew it was bad for a CEO to date one of their employees but he had been more worried about what people at the office would think, not about the press.

“He also sounds like a shitty person.” Mikasa added. Armin pinched the bridge of his nose looking down, knowing that any hope for the conversation had been lost with Mikasa’s statement. Eren face turned bright red with anger.

“You don’t know anything about him Mikasa” Eren shouted.

“Well neither do you! I do know that he is a pervert that gets off on having you walk in on him having sex with another man.” Mikasa shouted back.

Eren took a step toward Mikasa, who did not back down. His mind was reeling. He couldn’t actually deny what Mikasa was saying because he didn’t actually know himself if that was the case, but he trusted Levi when he had said he liked him.

“He is being manipulated by Erwin. That man is just playing a sick game!” Eren shouted back.

“And Levi is dragging you into it! You are going to get hurt Eren and when you do it will me and Armin that have to put you back together!” She said. Armin looked up in horror trying to distance himself from the argument. Eren could see that pain on Mikasa’s face and suddenly felt bad for shouting at her. She only had his best interests at heart.

“I’m sorry, Mikasa.” Eren said hugging his sister. She didn’t hesitate to hug him back. “I know you and Armin are trying to protect me, but you need to let me make my own decisions. I know that perusing Levi has its dangers, but I really like him. I want to do this.” Eren said looking between his friends. He waited for them to reply.

“As long as you know what you are getting into.” Armin said nodding. Eren smiled at him, before turning to look at Mikasa. He made sure to give her his puppy look. Everyone said it was irrespirable. Mikasa looked at him blankly for a few seconds before sighing loudly deflating her posture.

“Alright, but he does anything to hurt you…” She said before Eren cut her off.

“You will kill him and all that. I know.” He said hugging her again. He didn’t mention that there was no way anyone in their position could hurt someone like Levi. He was just happy she was giving him any form of a chance.

He let go of Mikasa and switched to hugging Armin so tightly that Armin thought he was going to burst. He laughed patting Eren on the back. It had been a long time since they had seen Eren this happy, and if Levi could do that to him maybe he wasn’t so bad. It seemed like Erwin was the only bad guy from what Eren had told them. Armin made a mental note to look into Erwin.

“What am I going to wear on Saturday?” Eren said after he let go of Armin.

Mikasa rolled her eyes from behind the two boys; Armin stifled a giggle. Eren got this way any time he got asked out on a date. He always over analyzed things and freaked out. “I am serious guys!” Eren said lightly slapping Armin when he saw his patronizing look. That just Armin unable to control his laughter; a light peal of giggles form behind them let them know that Mikasa had also lost her cool. Eren turned to give her an indignant look.

“You guys are jerks!” Eren said before stomping off to his room. He could hear a burst of laughter from the kitchen as he slammed the door close. Even though he was still mad at his friends he couldn’t help but smiled as he flopped onto his bed. He had a date with Levi on Saturday. Things were good, very good.

Even though there were only three more days of the week, it felt like an eternity to Levi. He had told Hanji about getting drunk and asking Eren out later that same day. Hanji as predicted cackled like a manic and then proceeded to tease the shit out of Levi until he threw her out of his office. He had stayed in the doorway to make sure she didn’t pester Eren on her way out.

Before Levi had returned to his office he glanced over to Eren who positively beamed at him. While the smiled wouldn’t seem out of the ordinary it had sent Levi’s heart a flutter. As he closed the doors to his office he cursed himself for being so cliché. He was a grown man, a grown man with his own company he wasn’t some hormonal high schooler who had asked out their first crush.

The sad part was that was not too far from the truth. Erwin had been his first and only love, but he had fallen out of love just as fast as he had fallen in love. He had not real lingering feelings over the man in the romantic sense. Erwin and him had too much history for Levi to ever consider completely cutting him out of his life. He just needed Erwin to go back to behaving himself. They had being doing so well until Levi’s moment of weakness. He was still cursing himself for that. If he had just been stronger none of this would have happened; that included him asking Eren out and he couldn’t bring himself to regret that.

The rest of the week pasted was relatively uneventful. Levi made sure to avoid alcohol not wanting another repeat of what had happened. The last thing he needed was to end up drunk booty calling Erwin by accident.

At the office Levi could help but be reduced to a blushing mess every time he saw Eren. It was only Levi’s ability to keep a straight face that kept any gossip from spreading. Only Eren knew that Levi was acting strangely.

And boy did Eren use it for his advantage. Anytime Eren would deliver anything to Levi he would add a little extra swing of his hips in his walk. He knew that as he walked out of the office Levi’s eyes were on him. The feeling sent a rush through Eren’s body.

On Friday evening Hanji came bursting into his office, banging the doors behind her. Levi looked up to see Petra hurrying to close the doors. Hanji plopped down into the chair that faced Levi’s desk. Focusing on work, Levi tried to ignore the women for as long as he could.

“So your big date is tomorrow.” She said in a knowing voice. Levi turned to give her a get to the point look. “What are you actually planning to do on this date?” She asked slowly.

Levi froze. It had been so long since he had been on a date. What did people actually do on dates? What did they talk about? He was sure work was off the table. He heard a crackle from the women sitting across from him. He glared up at her.

“I figured you wouldn’t have gotten that far. Don’t worry Hanji to the rescue.” She said with a bright smile. Levi really didn’t want to trust this with her, but what choice did he have.

“So what do you suggest? I highly doubt that Eren has the same views at what is romantic as you.” He said. If he left this completely up to Hanji he was sure they would end up doing something they would both regret later. Hanji persed her lips in displeasure at Levi about continued.

“I was just going to suggest that you take him to a nice restaurant but not too nice. He wouldn’t be used to the kinds of places you usually go. They might make him feel uncomfortable, so be considerate when you pick the place.” Levi nodded. He hadn’t really thought about that, he didn’t want Eren to feel too uncomfortable to talk. “Also don’t talk about a few subjects; don’t talk about work, Erwin, politics, religion, past relationships, or any other controversial subject.” Hanji said counting the subjects on her fingers. Levi repeated them in his mind in order to commit them to memory.

“Damn, are you going to leave us anything to talk about?” Levi muttered, Hanji shot him a look that shut him up.

“Now you can either end the date after that, which I think would be good for a first date or you can do something small afterward. Maybe see a movie so there isn’t any real pressure to talk.” Hanji said with a nod of her head.

All of a sudden she let out a squeal and leaned over Levi’s desk, pulling the man into a tight hug, squishing his face to her shirt. “My baby is going on a date.” She said in a singsong voice. Levi angrily pushed her away from him, sitting back in his chair, fixing his hair.

“Calm the fuck down. I am older than you and it is not that strange. People are always falling all over themselves to go out with me.” Levi hissed.

“Yeah, but you aren’t to go out with them” Hanji said.

She had a point. Levi had no shortage of suitors, but he always turned them down. He just never had an interest in anyone. He always cited work as the reason he never dated. It helped to him and his company out of the media so Hanji never complained about it before.

‘Shut up and get out of here and do not; I repeat do not give Eren a hard time. I don’t need him heading for the hills before our date.” Levi ordered dismissing Hanji. The women thankfully stood up to leave Levi in peace. She was crackling as she opened the doors to the office.

“Heeeey, Eren.” She called loudly before closing the door.

“Son of a bitch.” Levi muttered rolling his eyes. He didn’t bother stopping it though, instead choosing to research good spots for first dates. He couldn’t help but smiled as he thought about the fact that the very next day he would be going out with Eren. Things were good for once, very good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I hoped you liked it.  
> Feel free to send some feedback here or on my tumblr, awildtitanappears.tumbr.com


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren gets ready for his date and has some last minute cold feet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is pretty much all filler, but I actually like it better than almost any other chapter so far. Let me know what you guys think!
> 
> SO my summer job is killing me, only have access to internet fro 2 hours a day is rough and I am not quite sure if the next chapter will be out by next monday, but it will be out next week for sure. Sorry in advance.
> 
> As always thank you for the feedback, please leave anymore that you have here or on my tumblr, awildtitanappears

The rest of the week pasted at a painstaking slow crawl Eren felt. There were only a couple of workdays that stood between Eren and the weekend but they felt like years. Sitting at his desk, staring at his computer monitor, Eren tried to focus on his work, but his knee shaking unintentionally betrayed him. It didn’t take long for Petra to notice Eren’s fidgeting.

“Eren, you need to calm down. You look like an overexcited puppy.” She said good-naturedly. Eren stopped his knee shaking as he gave her a sheepish look.

“Sorry. I am just having a hard time focuses right now.” Eren said apologetically looking over at Petra.

            “It is kind of cute, but super distracting.” Petra laughed her light giggle. It reminded Eren of a bell. He looked around his computer to see Petra sitting comfortably in his chair leaning forward toward him, leaning her elbows on her desk. There was a knowing look in her eyes that made Eren nervously shift in his seat.

Not being able to hold the eye contact, Eren looked away first biting his lip. He was grateful that Petra had not directly asked him what was making him act like a hyperactive teenager since the day he had come in late with Levi.

Whenever Levi walked by Eren’s desk he would flash Eren a look. Every time it made Eren blush. He would duck his head behind his computer to avoid Petra’s knowing look. He hadn’t realized how easy he was to read, but it seemed that Petra knew more than she was letting on.

When Saturday actually came Eren was an emotional wreck. He knew he tended to get stressed before dates, but this was beyond anything like he experienced before. When he woke up he was so nervous he felt like he was going to throw up. He laid on his bed trying to quell his unease, but anytime his mind wandered to the impending date a lump in his throat formed making him feel queasy.

Eventually Eren was able to calm himself down enough to get out of bed. He wondered into the kitchen where Armin and Mikasa already sat at their worn table. Eren pulled out a bowl from a cabinet and poured himself some Luck Charms. He collapsed into the red wooden chair at the table. All of the chairs at their table were different; none of them had been able to agree on a single style when they had bought them. Eren felt like it fit the tone of the apartment. Everything was used and mismatched. It almost looked like a thrift shop had thrown up in their apartment.

Not really having an apatite Eren just circled his spoon in the milk. His eyes bore into his bowl; he was glaring slightly at a misshaped clover as if it was the cause of all his problems. He grabbed the spoon like it was a knife and stabbed at the clover drowning it in the milk.

“Stop playing with your food.” Mikasa monotone voice said, snapping Eren’s attention from his murderous intent toward his sister.

She was inspecting him, her eyes racking over Eren’s face. He shifted uncomfortably under her intense gaze. He didn’t really feel like talking about his nerves about his date later. He dropped his spoon in panic as he thought about the date. The spoon fell into the bowl, splashing the milk all over the table. Curing Eren stood up to grab a rag to clean up the mess.

“Eren, you need to calm down. Your date will be fine.” Armin said in a calming voice. Eren’s grip on the rag tightened before he turned around to face his friends. Ignoring their concerned looks Eren leaned over the table to wipe up the milk, pressing too hard into the table.

A hand was placed on top of his, stopping his motions. Eren looked up at Armin who was looking at him with concern in his eyes. Eren looked away trying not to tear up. He didn’t want to appear weak.

Taking his hand out from under Armin’s, Eren sat back down to try and eat his cereal again. He didn’t do much better, because the knot in his stomach kept him from being able to get anything down. Eventually he just stood up and threw away the soggy cereal.

He sat back down at the table, not wanting to be alone at the moment. The kitchen was quiet, as Eren was the one that normally filled the silence with mindless chatter forcing his friends to join him. Every time Eren tried to open his mouth to talk his throat squeezed shut and his mouth went dry.

All he could think about was the date and everything that could go wrong. What if Levi realized how boring and unimportant Eren was? None of his pervious relationships had worked out and the single factor in common with them all was him. He could only conclude that there was something wrong with him that caused all of his relationships to fail. Even Armin had said he wasn’t emotionally mature enough to handle a relationship and Armin was never wrong.

Eren could feel his heart rate rise and start to sweat but he couldn’t do anything to stop it. His breathing started to become shallow as he felt the walls closing in on him.

            A sudden pressure on his hand made him look up in surprise. Mikasa had taken his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Her look of concern made Eren feel guilty for his freak out, but did nothing to quell his nerves.

“If this midget is causing you this much stress, tell him you can’t go on the sate.” Mikasa added. Eren shot her a horrified look.

“No!” Eren yelled shocking Mikasa with his intensity. He felt bad when he saw her flinch back at his intensity. “I mean I am nervous yeah, but I really want to go.

He looked over to Armin to back him up, but faltered when he saw Armin’s hesitant look, biting his lip. Armin looked away guiltily under Eren’s intense gaze.

“I think you should consider what Mikasa is saying.” Armin said slowly gaging Eren’s reaction. Eren for his part sat silently in his chair in shock. He had always supported his friends and their decisions, so why couldn’t they support his?

“Stop treating me like a child that can’t handle themselves.” Eren said with a bite in his voice that made Armin and Mikasa look away in shame. “I already told you guys how much this date meant to me, why can’t you support me?” He asked quietly looking down at his lap. He was still in his pajama shorts, so he played with the frayed edge of the fabric.

“We do support you.” Armin said hurriedly trying to cover lost ground. “But this is really stressing you out just a few seconds ago you were starting to have a panic attack and your date is still hours away. It clearly isn’t healthy. We just want what is best for you.” Armin said, Mikasa nodding in agreement.

Eren looked between the two, trying to reign in his emotions. It felt like his friends thought he was going to fail. Normally Eren did not have a problem with his self-esteem, he would even go so far to say that he was too self-confident at times, but now it felt like everything and everyone thought he was going to fail so he was starting to agree with them.

Not being able to handle the conversation anymore Eren stood up suddenly the squeaking of the chair on title making Mikasa and Armin cringe. He stormed off to his room slamming the door behind him. It was childish but it felt good in the moment. He flopped down on his bed, pulling a pillow to his chest hugging it tightly.

He stared at a poster on his wall trying to calm down. It was proving more difficult than he thought it was going to be. Now that he was alone there was nothing distracting him from his thoughts. All of his insecurities about his date came flooding back to him, overwhelming him.

Burying his face in the pillow Eren tried to regulate his breathing that was starting to become shallow again. Tears pricked the corner of his eyes. He bit his lip harshly trying to distract himself from his thoughts. He looked up at the clock on his nightstand to see he still had hours before his date and he groaned. It was much to early to justify getting ready so he didn’t have that to distract himself. Seeing as he had just stormed off to his room like a baby he would feel too awkward going out to Mikasa and Armin. It kind of hurt that neither of them had followed him, but he did appreciate them giving him breathing room.

Looking for a distraction Eren rolled over to grab his phone from the nightstand and started to play a game. Eventually Eren was able to distract himself enough that his breathing returned to normal. He knew it wasn’t a long-term solution but it made him feel good in the moment, so that was good enough. At some point he vaguely heard the door to his room open quietly but ignored it in favor of trying to beat his score on flappy bird. When he felt the edge of his bed sink under weight he tore his attention from his phone screen to Armin who was perched on the edge of his bed.

He threw his phone in the general direction of his nightstand, not looking at the tell tale crash of it landing on the floor. He would worry about that later. He focused his attention on Armin who had yet to speak. Eren decided he wasn’t going to say anything until Armin apologized for earlier. They sat in silence for a while Eren staring at Armin and Armin looking down at his own knees. Eventually Armin spoke up.

“I am sorry about questioning you, but you have to realize it is only because we have your best interests at heart.” Armin said. Eren didn’t say anything so Armin took it as a sign to keep going. “Even you have to admit that you can be a little bit emotionally constipated at times, but we really are rooting for you. We can see how much you care about Levi and even though we can’t really approve of the relationship we want you to try if it will make you happy.” Armin said pausing to catch his breath. “But if it is going to stress you out to this level, it makes us wonder is it really worth it? You clearly aren’t happy right now and you need to consider if it is worth going out with Levi if it is going to cause you this much distress.” He finished waiting patiently for Eren to respond.

Eren took a moment to collect his thought before replying. “Thank you for your concern, but it isn’t your guys place to decide what I can and can’t handle. If I think I can handle going out with Levi then it is my choice to make and your guys job as my best friends to stand by me and that decision.” Eren said calmly. Armin nodded in understanding but remained quiet.

His pervious anger wearing off Eren leaned over to bring Armin into a tight hug. The bad energy between the two fade and Armin giggled in Eren’s embrace. The hug was interrupted by a loud blaring of an alarm on Eren’s phone going off. He quickly let go of Armin and dived onto the floor searching for his phone. He frowned not being able to find it. The blaring kept going until Eren was able to find it under a pile of laundry he should probably do at some point.. He quickly grabbed the phone, silencing the alarm.

“I need to start getting ready for my date now.” Eren said nervously not sure if he was going to get another lecture from Armin. Luckily it seemed Armin had learned his lesson and stood up to leave.

“Go ahead and get ready. Let us know if you need help with anything.” Armin smiled before he left Eren alone in his room.

Eren’s heart started racing thinking about how soon his date was. He quickly went to the bathroom to shower. He stayed in the shower for a long time letting the water soothe his nerves. He only left its comfort when Mikasa pounded on the door yelling about how he was wasting water. He quickly turned off the water after that.

Wrapping a towel around his waste tightly Eren strode back into his room, opening his closet. He wasn’t sure what to wear since Levi hadn’t actually said where they were going. While he didn’t want to be over dressed by wearing the nicest suit he owned, he also was legitimately worried about being underdressed. Levi seemed like the kind of guy who only went to high-end places and Eren was sure he wouldn’t fit in there. Normally the nicest place he and his friends ever went was Olive Garden and he didn’t think would quite cut it with Levi.

He settled on a nice black suit paired with a black dress shirt. He carefully buttoned the shirt up, not wanting to skip a button, which he was known to do. He wasn’t sure what tie to wear; a black one would make him feel like he was going to a funeral and not a date. So he settled on a turquoise one that matched his eyes.

As he tied the tie around his neck as he exited his room. Mikasa and Armin were sprawled out on the couch, but sat up when they saw Eren. Not wanting another confrontation Eren walked past the couch and sat in the beat up recliner. He sank into the chair, legs hanging over an arm of the chair. He looked over to Armin and Mikasa.

“You look very nice.” Mikasa said.

“Thank you. Levi should be arriving soon.” Eren said checking his phone. Since he was looking at his phone, Eren didn’t see Mikasa’s scowl. It was about fifteen minutes before 7, his heart fluttered.

The TV was the only was the only noise, but Eren only vaguely paid attention to it. He was too busy checking his phone for a text or call from Levi. He leaned back over the arm of the recliner, his brunette hair dusting the ground as he moaned his impatience. He heard a small giggle from Armin.

Checking his phone he saw that it was now 7:01. He let out a strangled whine that kind of sounded like a cat dying. “Calm down Eren. It is only a minute. He will be here soon.” Armin said rolled his eyes.

Eren pulled himself up from his weird backbend over the arm of the recliner with a groan. Realizing that he probably messed up his suit, Eren quickly stood up and straightened himself out. He sent a longing glance at the door. As if on cue there was a knock. Eren let out a startled yelp and ran toward the door, missing his friends’ exasperated looks.

Pausing when he got to the door, Eren took a deep breath before opening it. Levi was standing in the hallway looking like his proper self. His had his hair done a little differently, the front pushed back. Eren thought it looked nice. He also wore a black suit, but it was deistically nicer than Eren’s, who was mentally kicking himself for not wearing a better one. Levi was also holding a single pink rose.

            “I brought you this.” Levi muttered shoving the rose out toward Eren who accepted it.

“You really didn’t have to, but come in will I put it in water.” Eren said steeping back, letting Levi into his apartment.

“Hanji said I should.” Eren thought he heard Levi mumble before steeping into the apartment. He ignored the question and made a mental note to thank Hanji on Monday when he was sure she would grill him for details about the date. He knew that she was the only other person at the office who knew about it.

“It will only take a second.” Eren assured before disappearing into the kitchen.

He was a little hesitant to leave Levi alone while he put the flower in water when he knew Mikasa was ready to pounce, but he wanted to preserve the rose for as long as he could. They didn’t have any vases around the apartment so Eren just found a tall glass and filled it with water before placing the rose carefully inside. He liked that Levi had gone with pink instead of the traditional red. It was a rich color of pink, soft and delicate. Eren wasn’t normally one for flowers but if Levi gave it to him it made him gush.

He returned to the door to see Armin and Mikasa standing in front of Levi. Armin was shaking Levi’s hand while Mikasa glared at the short man. Eren moved quickly to intervene.

“All settled. Let’s go.” Eren asked grabbing a coat from the rake. It was starting to get chilly out and he wasn’t sure if his suit jacket would be enough. After he had finished putting on the coat, Eren wrapped his arm around Levi’s interlocking them, leading him out the door. He turned to wave a quick goodbye to Armin and Mikasa before hurrying to toward the elevator.

He let out a deep breath when the doors to the elevator slid closed. His heart was beating so loud that he was sure that Levi could hear it. That would be embarrassing. Realizing his arm was still wrapped around Levi’s his face went red and quickly withdrew it. He wasn’t sure what the protocol was, but he didn’t want Levi to think he was being too clingy on the first date. He looked down at his feet shuffling them a little.

“Your friends seem very caring.” Levi said pausing before saying the last word. Eren flinched a little. He was sure Levi didn’t mean anything by the statement but he always felt like his friends could be a little overbearing, especially when it came to new people in his life.

“Yes. They have always acted pseudo-parents to be ever since my mom died.” Eren smiled. He really did appreciate his friends; they had helped him through a really hard time. He just wished that they would give him more breathing room since he was an adult now.

The ding of the elevator let them know they had reached the ground floor and the doors opened. Before exiting the elevator Levi grabbed Eren’s hand squeezing it gently. Eren blushed and looked away but let himself be led through the lobby. A lump in his throat formed as they neared the lobby doors. As soon as they exited the building their date officially started. Eren swallowed nervously, trying to keep his emptions in check. He looked over at Levi’s calm face and finally felt his heart calm down.





End file.
